Touch
by KristenCard
Summary: AU. Successful criminal defense lawyer Regina Mills gets a new case. Slow burning SQ.
1. Late

Disclaimer: I do not own ANY of the characters in this story. Just borrowing them for a bit.

N/A: I'm not a lawyer and the only thing I know about US legal system is what I remember from watching Law and Order. So if you are, I apologize for making a mess out of your legal process. I am also not a native English speaker, so my apologies for mistakes. I'm constantly going through the text making corrections.

* * *

"Miss, miss, can you hear me? What is your name?"

She was numbingly cold, so much that her fingers refused to bend and her face felt like broken bare concrete painfully whipped by icy hair. Her arms… her shoulders… she couldn't feel anything at this point, while mentally going through the checklist to determine whether she is, in fact, surviving this fiasco. If she could, she would have laughed with the absurdity of the situation. Instead, she felt so drained she could barely manage to open her eyes when she heard the voice.

"Is she alive?" another voice came from further away, "Should we call an ambulance?"

"Yes, she is. She is alright."

She saw a guy in front of her… Ah, goody, a police officer. She wanted to smile before remembering how she ended up on the shore anyway. God, she is probably in all kinds of trouble. The officer was checking her pulse. And then the rest of her. Her impulse was to punch him, but all she managed is to get her tongue to cooperate long enough to weakly comment, "Creep."

The guy was not phased a bit, "Yeah she is just fine. A bit frozen. Get the blanket from the trunk, come down and help me get her up to the car. We need to get her to the station."

What? She wasn't alright. She was barely breathing. She doesn't need a police station, she needs a warm bed and perhaps an IV drip. She felt the hands grabbing her upright and then mercifully a warm blanket was draped around her shoulders. She was pushed up, and then more, and then she saw the car lights blasting right at her. One guy opened the back door, while the other pushed her into the car with a soft, "Watch your head".

The car felt warm and cosy and pretty disgusting, as she felt the seat stick to the bottom of her bikini. September is not a month to go night swimming, she thought. Detecting unknown eyes watching her through the back mirror, she tried self-consciously to cover her legs as much as she could. Now she knows how getting in the back of a police car feels in all kinds of different state of undress. There should be a proper joke there somewhere.

Leaning her head against the window she glanced at her fingers. Strange, it feels like she was in the water for hours, yet, she could smell the blood under her nails and burned plastic in her hair.

How am I getting out of this, she pondered and a second later she didn't have a choice but to close her eyes.

* * *

"I'll have that to go," said Regina Mills to the barista while trying to fish out her phone from the handbag. The idiotic thing wouldn't stop ringing, lost somewhere deep inside and completely in line with most Murphy's laws; it was 11 pm on a Monday after a 15 hour work day, she was late home as it is, and constant ringing implied that somewhere right now there is an emergency. Either her son is in trouble, which was highly unlikely, or it's work. Unfortunately, much more likely. Either way, she is in a hurry and latte will be drunk somewhere on the move. Tossing some cash on the counter and picking up the cup she finally felt her phone under her fingers and with a glance on the screen and a sigh picked up.

"No Tink, whatever it is, I have to go home and I'm really tired," she said, opening the doors and stepping out into the fresh early September air.

"Sorry boss," came heavily accented apologetic voice, "I just got a call from that charming officer from the 11th precinct, that good looking blond guy, permanently attached to my friend Mary. You remember Mary don't you?"

"Yes, how could I forget those colorful farm animal patterns. Woman should come with a warning sign on her forehead for the seizures she is inducing with her choice of apparel," Regina couldn't even think about the annoying goody-two-shoes without an eye roll. It was her body's natural reaction, honestly.

After a five second pause, mistakenly expecting some signs of a good intentioned humor, Tink continued, "Well, anyway, she gave him my number because he is concerned about a woman they brought to the station as she doesn't have any legal representation yet. He is afraid she doesn't stand a chance against chief detective Gold who is looking to get her charged for a first degree. Needless to say, this is all very hush hush and Gold can't find out why and how we know about the case."

"Interesting," Regina said in a tone that clearly implied that it wasn't so Tink felt it's better to skip to the important bit soon and talk faster.

"She was brought in at 3 am for apparently murdering her boyfriend. But get this, there is no body and according to Nolan, no evidence."

Regina stopped walking.

"They can't charge her without anything, she should just call a lawyer and be done with it by the time I finish putting Henry to bed." She said, raising her hand for a Taxi still hoping she is going home.

"What Nolan knows now is that there was a boat explosion, and a man is missing. She was brought in at 3 am yesterday."

"What? That is more than 40 hours ago."

"Exactly. They found her on the shore next to the Old Coleridge Warf in a tank top and a bikini, looking like she swam there, except she wasn't talking in the car, so not sure. Nolan doesn't understand what is going on, but it's fishy Regina. She shouldn't be there still, not without a body. It's all very strange but Gold has something on this girl, and she needs some help."

A taxi stopped in front of her. She got in while maneuvering coffee and the phone.

"Where to mam?"

Breathe in, breathe out Regina.

"Regina, apparently she hasn't called anyone since she's been there. We don't think she has any family or friends."

Regina was quiet. She really needs to go home, but while normally she doesn't respond to Tink's appeals to her sympathetic side, she cannot stand those creeps in the 11th, grand detective Gold first and foremost. Her mother's little lap dog should burn in hell. But she should get home… she has a son to think of. Besides, what kind of person doesn't have any friends? Well, she herself doesn't count, as she is not a murder suspect in a bikini and has employees.

"Regina, if there was a murder and they find the body, this could get really big."

Another 5 seconds passed.

"Mam?"

Regina massaged her forehead slowly, feeling the upcoming headache. Well, there's no point in missing a potentially big case if Henry is taken care of. Surely she can muster up some energy.

"11th police precinct on the corner of Roger and Smith," she instructed the driver and then with a sip of her coffee continued, "Tink, I'm on my way there now. Call Henry's sitter and check if she can stay for two more hours. If not, you go and take care of him while I'm back."

"But Regina, I actually have prev…"

"Take your computer with you. Open a new file on the S drive for me. Then you check what this boat explosion is, where, when and see what else you can get out of Nolan, or that little friend of yours. She can't keep her mouth shut anyways so that will be an easy task."

"Sure Regina, but it's late now an…"

"Then stay close to the phone, I'll call you if I need to prepare a complaint against those simpletons in the 11th."

"Alright. I'll be right on it," came with a dejected sing-sang.

"What's her name?"

"Emma Swan."

"And start with anything you can find on our Miss Swan. You know the drill. I'll be in the precinct in 15 minutes, I want to know what I'm working on", she hung up before Tink managed a reply and immediately Googled the news for the Boston area. If the explosion happened on Saturday night, it should be in the press by now. Some scrolling later, nothing much except a small article about a boat accident, no mentions of any casualties. Incoming message from Tink said that Henry is fine, already asleep and Ashley can stay for a bit longer. Good. Another Google search, this time for Emma Swan. Nothing on the web, no Facebook profile, no Twitter account under the name, no Instagram. Three other Emma Swans appear on social media, none of them old enough to be a boyfriend killer.

Mysterious little murder suspect we have here, she thought, sipping her coffee she allowed herself to lean back and close her eyes in a moment of relaxation. If she wants to help this woman, she will need to bring in her A-game to that testosterone hellhole.

Disposing her cup of joy into the nearest bin, she stepped in through the door, clap of her heels on the hardwood floor alerting few present officers. With a glance to the left she confirmed that the pretty boy Nolan was still there at his desk, chief detective Gold nowhere to be seen and that demented troll that looks like he hasn't seen a shower in two weeks was still at the reception desk. Knowing this establishment, probably downloading illegal pornography on a government computer.

"Leroy, I hear you have here an Emma Swan. You have two minutes to take me to see her."

"Well, well, who do we have here? What? The feminist brigade sent the big guns Mills."

The fact that he manages to string a sentence together after that daily intake of donuts and alcohol was, frankly, surprising.

"One minute, 45 seconds."

"Relax, sister. It's late. You should come back in the morning."

Regina just blinked and continued adding some more menace to her tone, "One minute, 30 seconds until I'm raising a complaint to the district attorney's office."

"Sure, sure. Look, chief detective is going to be here in just a bit. If you just have a seat, I'll be with you in a second."

To his horror, her voice goes even lower.

"Leroy... that is your name, isn't it? I will not be taking a seat. What I'll be doing is seeing my client, who, I'm led to believe, is held here since Saturday night without having any legal consultation. Now you have two options. Either you take me to see her, or I'll be sure the internal takes a look at your track record and perhaps your hard drive by the end of the night. Got it?"

Nod.

"Good. Now, that fine officer sitting there will take me to my client."

Nod.

"You see Leroy, we are almost friends when you play nice."

She turned around while he was still muttering something about Evil Queens and indicated to Nolan with her arm to lead the way. He let her into a room with a table, two chairs, and an obvious two sided mirror.

"Wait here Miss Mills," he said and then in a lower voice added, "and thank you for this. I just felt sorry for her, it wasn't right, and you know how it goes with Gold. There wasn't much I could do."

"I understand officer. Now if you would be so kind to bring in my client so I can meet her."

Regina sat at the desk and took out her phone to check what Tink managed to get on Miss Swan.

 _Tink: Emma Swan, 31 years old, grew up bouncing around in the foster system. I've been cross referencing and going through the databases. She served some time, but I can't find the criminal records. Perhaps she was underage at the time. Also, interestingly, she seems to work as a bail bondperson. I'll keep digging and let you know._

Regina quickly typed back.

 _That is alright Tink. I'll talk to her now so focus on the case first and the alleged victim. Stay online for another hour and we can convey in the morning._

She sent the message just as the door opened and Nolan was escorting a toll blonde woman to the seat opposite of Regina. When he removed himself from the blonde, Regina gasped.

"Nolan, why is my client not wearing proper clothes, why is she in handcuffs and what the hell is wrong with you people?"

Her tone must have startled Miss Swan too because the blonde's head snapped up and her eyes met Regina's uncompromising stare.

"Your client?" she asked, voice raspy, confusion evident.

"Yes Miss Swan, do keep up, will you? Come on Nolan, I haven't got all night," seeing him open his mouth and raise his arm in an attempt to think of what to say, she stopped him before he even got the first syllable out. "Sorry if my previous question gave you the wrong impression, but I'm not interested in excuses. Take her handcuffs off now."

He quietly did as told, "I'll be outside if you need anything."

Looking over Emma properly for the first time Regina asked, "What size are you, 6?"

Emma blinked in disbelief. This woman is her lawyer? She doesn't have a lawyer. She was waiting for some government appointed lackey who would take one look at her and leave her to fail, not this… this obviously very impressive woman, with expensive shoes and perfume to match that just radiates confidence. Must be some mistake, Emma though, she will go away as soon as she learns more about her. It would not be the first time. But for now, her deep brown eyes were filled with curiosity and annoyance. Before realizing she asked her question out loud Regina continued.

"It seems so Miss Swan. Now, I understand you had a rough 45 hours, but try to concentrate, we have a lot of grounds to cover."

Emma Swan looked like a death warmed over. She was pale, bags under her eyes showed she didn't get much or any sleep, her hair was a blond mess. Her shoulder, visible under the blanket that she had wrapped around herself, was marked by a massive bruise, knuckles of her right hand were torn, and as far as Regina could tell, she was generally showing signs of overall exhaustion. Eyes were red, her lips trembling slightly. Otherwise, Regina had to admit, she was a very beautiful woman with striking facial features and obviously a body to kill for. Well… interesting choice of words there, brain. But there was also some weariness in her eyes. If she were one of those people who believed in past lives, she would definitely describe Miss Swan as an old soul. This woman lived through her fair share, and not all of it was pretty. Drugs maybe, abandonment issues, perhaps home violence… one of those at the least would be Regina's guess. Right now, she was obviously on the defense, Regina just needed to figure out from what.

"Excuse me, but please, who hired you? I don't…" Emma started asking while Regina raised a finger to shush her, while raising her phone to her ear.

"Just a moment before we start Miss Swan… Hey Tink. Could you please pick up some clothes for our Miss Swan here? Mmm… Yes, size 6 if you please. Everything… Yes, everything…. Tough luck Tink, you have 30 minutes," she hung up and with a smile continued, "Alright Miss Swan. This is how it goes. I'm Regina Mills and I'm your lawyer. You are very lucky, if I might add, because I'm good. I like challenges and strongly dislike the attitude of your detective Gold. Which I believe should be enough for you to trust me."

Emma was looking at the intimidating brunette not quite believing her ears.

"My assistant will bring you some clothes to change for now. I don't know whether any charges will be pressed, but for tonight you're covered. Worst case scenario is, you are charged, and I'm getting you in front of a judge at some point tomorrow to determine bail. However, for that I need to know some things... Who are you and what happened to you on Saturday?" At this point Regina put pressed a red recording button on the screen of her phone and looked at Emma while gently crossing her fingers in front of her in a gesture that implied to Emma it's her turn to speak. Except, Emma was very tired of people trying to intimidate her. So she raised an eyebrow and kept quiet, immediately noticing small signs of lawyer's impatience.

"Miss Swan… Emma, it's late, we're both tired. Let's not prolong this any more than necessary. It would be really beneficial for you to talk to me."

…

…

…

Regina rolled her eyes and leaned forward.

"Look, you don't have many friends here. Now I don't know what you did to piss off the chief detective but it has to be big because you are kept here for more than 40 hours while he is out there probably trying to find a body to pin on you."

Emma couldn't detects any lies or ill intentions coming from the lawyer so far, unless her superpower is drained out with the rest of her energy.

"Will he find a body to pin on you?"

…

…

"Yes"

Regina could barely hide her surprise as she leaned back in her chair rubbing her forehead.

"Did you kill this person?" she calmly continued, while silently hoping for the right answer.

"No"

"Good. It would come as a surprise to those who know my reputation, but I prefer to defend my clients when they are innocent."

"You believe me."

"You are surprised."

After a moment of hesitation, Emma nodded, "I normally don't have many people willing to stand in my corner." There was softness in her lips as she said that, eyes sparkled for a beat.

Before this woman gets any ideas, Regina decided to set the things straight, "Miss Swan, just so we are clear, I need your trust for this to work. But do not mistake me for a friend. You are my client."

"What? I wouldn't… "

"I'm sure, I just wanted to make it clear." For your benefit, Regina mused.

Emma just shook her head a little bit, as if to clear the air in her head as well as between the two. "I wouldn't dream about it Regina," her voice betraying her nervousness just a bit, "I'm… I'm not an idiot you know..." Or that lucky.


	2. Cut

"Can I ask you something before we start?" Emma said, rubbing the tiredness from her eyes. "I had a really rough couple of days with almost no sleep. Is it possible for you to get me some hot coffee?"

Regina half smiled, "Is this how I should bargain with you in the future? Coffee and clothes for information?"

However, the mention of clothes reminded Emma of her current state of undress. She snuggled more into her blanket and nodded, "Hell, I think we can both agree I'm in a pretty bad position right now. Count yourself lucky Ms Mills. I'm not normally this cheap."

"Neither am I. You'll find that out when you see my fees."

Fees? Fuck. Alarm bells rang in Emma's head so loud that Regina picked it up, "Oh don't worry Miss Swan. We'll cross that bridge when we get there."

She stood up and went to the doors, opened them and said something to Nolan who was standing just outside. As she came back to her seat and pulled out a pen and some paper from her bag on the floor, Emma took a breath.

"So, where do you want me to start? The beginning?"

Regina just waved a go ahead.

"He wasn't my boyfriend."

"What?"

"The victim. Gold keeps calling him my boyfriend. He wasn't my boyfriend. He was my mark."

"You were working. Bail bondsperson." At Emma's raised eyebrow, Regina just shrugged, "Yes, I have that on you. I work fast."

Emma continued, "Exactly. I'm a bail bondsperson for an agency called Booth and Bail. Because I have, well, a set of skills required for finding people and re-apprehension of defendants who skip, I work mostly on the go. Boss e-mails me my marks, I get them."

"Seems like a risky career," Regina quietly commented.

"Well, yes… sometimes. But I've learned a long time ago how to deal with high stress high risk environment, and I'm good at this, so… it works, until it doesn't, no?" Emma looked at her hands, lightly rubbing the red marks on her wrists. "I actually wanted to be a detective. Can you imagine that?"

"Yes, actually I can."

Emma just shrugged of what sounded like a compliment, while Regina stored the little snippet of self-depreciation in her mind's file on Miss Swan.

"I got this new mark on Thursday. Well-of criminal scumbag named Killian Jones. He is running some sort of small-scale drug operation, got busted with some dirty money. On the surface file looked fine, seemed it would be a waltz, nothing to indicate violence," Emma lightly chuckled, "but now, the more I think about it, the more I am doubting..." she trailed off.

"Who sent you the mark?"

"It came from the agency's e-mail. Nothing unusual."

"Can I talk to your supervisor?"

"I guess. I don't know. Never met the guy."

"You _never_ personally talked to your boss?"

"No. You know Ms Mills, this is 2016. It's a new economy. It's a wonder that the agency deals with us through e-mail. Soon, bounty hunting will just be a matter of installing an app on your phone," Emma remarked.

"Never mind, let's not digress."

"Anyway, I've found out that Mr Jones is a man of certain taste, which notably includes hiring blond escorts for some hard-core party time on his boat. We are talking all sorts of kinks, but nothing particularly special. Assuming an identity of an escort is quite easy. One fake website and a couple of calls later, and I got myself a gig at Jones's boat anchored just a mile or so off the coast."

"Wait, I'm sorry. I seem to recall you telling me two minutes ago you are not an idiot. How did you think that assuming a false identity of a prostitute and going on a boat full of criminals is going to end well?" Regina practically barked not believing the recklessness of her client, while Emma just looked at her exasperated.

"I wouldn't do it again, if that is what you want to know."

Regina pressed her hand to her forehead and leaned back over the desk, "What happened next?"

"I was transferred to a boat with two other girls. Once there, I tried to locate Jones. I couldn't see where he was and his men weren't very talkative. The boat is an 11 foot yacht and I counted at least 12 other people on board, but it was difficult to get an accurate overview. With what I've been told when I was _hired_ , those men were not supposed to be present. So I was hanging there, pretending to drink cocktails in the afternoon sun, waiting. Girls got really drunk in a Jacuzzi with some of the guys, evening passed by and the party was slowly dying. I think it was probably around 11 pm when a guy came to me and told me Mr Jones is now interested in an after-party. By that time I already thought I'm not going to see this person at all and my little operation was a bust."

At that moment Nolan came in carrying two cups of coffee and placed them on the table.

"I got it from the vending machine, so I can't guarantee that it will be any good." He looked at Emma and smiled, while the woman just stared back not amused. Regina interrupted before it gets awkward.

"Thank you Nolan, this is very charming of you. Now go away and stay outside. We don't want anyone listening in."

He shuffled around and left.

Emma grabbed the warm drink with both her hands taking a deep breath of coffee, "He is behaving like I should be grateful to him and his puppy-dog eyes, yet he said nothing while his boss was monologueing and depriving me of basic rights in a futile attempt to get my confession."

"You haven't said anything to the detective about what happened, haven't you?" Regina asked while Emma sipped her coffee.

Emma just looked at her like she was insane, "I might have made some stupid decisions in my life, but I know how the system works. I said nothing. My plan was to wait it out for the 72 hours until he cannot hold me anymore without charges and take it from there. Try to find who is behind this. Presuming the body stays at the bottom of the bay."

"Let's go back to the boat. You were asked to come into his cabin?"

"Yes. I came in. He was there, sitting on a reclining chair ogling me like a fucking sleazeball. I tried to chat him up at first and stall for time. I had a plan. Get him a drink, lock him up and call the coast guard. I could hear the boys leaving the yacht on the speedboats, probably with the girls. The problem being is that without being there, I cannot really tell you who was left on board. Jones, he became… impatient. He liked what he saw", she made a small gesture pointing at herself, "and wanted to get laid. Badly. I was trying to talk, prepare more drinks, stall, until I get a good opportunity to surprise him and leave, but he wasn't having it. Things turned nasty once he grabbed my arm and pushed me on the floor."

Regina felt her heart picking up as she asked what she badly wanted not to be true, "Emma, he didn't... force himself on you?"

"Oh no. He tried, but I got violent. You don't go around finding bad guys without some serious skills in the self-defense department."

Emma looked at Regina and felt a bit of… pride? Yes, definitely, a little bit of pride. Regina passed her her own coffee cup after she noticed the blonde has finished hers.

"He managed a couple of good punches though, and I'm pretty sure I have a mark on my back where his stupid hook got me." Her blue shoulder and a split lip already stood as evidence. Then she turned around, lowered her blanket a bit and yes, down her back there was a long cut that was obviously bleeding at some point.

It took Regina a second to understand what kind of a hook Emma was mentioning, "He had a bloody hook for a hand? Like some 17th century pirate?"

"Yes, but I also left quite a scratch on his face, drawing quite a lot of blood," she said showing of acrylic nails. "Part of my costume," she explained the tacky design before moving on.

"I then managed to grab my martini glass from the table, hit him in the head and get out of the cabin. I locked the doors. He kept pounding at them very much alive and then suddenly, he stopped."

 **45 hours earlier**

"Kilian?" Emma asked through the door. She touched her lip. Fuck, bleeding. She hit her head lightly at the door thinking how stupid she was and how her entire task spiraled out of hand. She lost her focus and made simple beginner's mistakes. And well, now she has this mess. But, what the fuck is going on with the creepster?

"Jones?" she called.

No sound. She opened the door slightly… no sign.

"Hey one-hand?"

She covered her mouth in silent terror as her eyes caught the shiny object on the floor. It was the hook… attached to an arm… attached to nothing.

Shakily she looked away fighting the nausea at the unexpected image. The blood was soaking through the carpet, stain slowly spreading where she tried to get a better look at the arm without losing her stomach content. Something very sharp and strong was used, as the arm seemed to be cut right off. How did he not scream? She hadn't heard a shot fired. Perhaps they attacked with a strangling wire… perhaps... well, no use in guessing now.

The cabin was not completely lit but as far as she could tell, there were no other people present. Open window. Two open windows. Fuck. Fuck she is screwed. Like, seriously and 'I'm going to die here' screwed. She turned around towards the door, and as quietly as she could stepped toward the corridor that led to the big living room. The plush carpet was soft against her feet, and she tried to focus on the sensation and stop her accelerated breathing.

Ok, Emma, calm down. There is at least one more person here. That person just severed the hand of a known criminal. That person knows you are here too.

The living room was bright with lights and massive windows. She didn't want to risk to be seen so she turned left into another bedroom. She slowly walked to the windows, careful not to hit anything in the dark. After a minute she could see two figures that appeared to be men dressed in black, standing on the stern of the yacht. They bent over, picked up what was very obviously a dead body of Killian Jones and unceremoniously tossed him over.

Emma stood completely still while she watched the two figures move back inside. Of course, the speed boats have already left, so for them the only way to the land is taking the yacht for the ride. So, she needs to escape.

Think Emma, think. You are not going to die here in the hands of some ghouls like an idiot. Keep moving, that will give you the upper hand. Focus.

She walked lightly back to the main corridor and went around the corner. She heard the front door closing.

Next room, kitchen. Perfect! Knives and forks… perhaps she can find an axe is she is lucky. As quietly and as quickly as she could she went through the kitchen. Bingo. An axe on the wall next to a small kitchen size fire extinguisher. She grabbed it just as she heard sounds coming closer.

"Oh lassie, come out," it was a rather loud unknown male voice taunting her with sing songs like in a cheap slasher film, "there is no point in hiding because you are outnumbered and, I'm sorry to say, outgunned."

She rolled her eyes. Great, how is she going to stand up to firearms with an axe? She can't. If they catch her, she probably dies. She hoped the water is not that bad and she'll manage to swim to the shore. Theoretically she should. She could. She will.

She stood next to the doors waiting for the baddie number one to walk inside. The handle moved and the doors slowly opened. As the person turned around she fired a cloud of foam straight into the face and ran out as fast as she could. He hear him scream followed by gun shots in her general direction. She moved, running through the corridor towards outside. Once the fresh air hit her face she checked where the other person was. Another shot. Ok, no time for that.

She looked at the water, saw a shadow moving in her direction and decided. Now or never. She jumped into the dark sea, leaving the axe to sink. She dived closer to the boat and took a breath of air. This she learned from the films. Never go straight out, for they might see you. Keep close to the boat for a few minutes, and they never think to check underneath the fenders. Damn it was cold. She will have to start swimming fast, otherwise she'll just turn into Jack fucking Dawson.

 **45 hours later**

"Miss Swan, that is very dramatic and all, but when Titanic sank the sea temperature was below 30 degrees, hardly the same as Boston in September", Regina remarked, her way of supporting the humorous side of Emma's storytelling.

"Well, yes, it certainly felt really bad. It takes me normally 40-45 minutes to swim a mile. I swear it was double the time in the open waters."

"But what happened with the boat? Wasn't there an explosion?"

"Yes. While I was waiting for them to go back inside, I've heard one of them saying 'Cover everything really nicely, this baby needs to burn' or something in that sense. I panicked and started swimming to create some distance between myself and the yacht. When it went off I swear, that was where I came closest to dying. The bits and pieces landed all around me, come of them still burning. The noise…"

Emma was interrupted by a noise outside of the door.

"Move Nolan or you are history."

"Don't say a word Miss Swan, I have this", Regina said quickly.

A second later a man walked in, with a familiar limp and a scowl on his face.

"Oh Regina darling, you came to help the needy? How noble."

"Detective Gold," Regina announced darkly while standing up, "someone needs to check why you are depriving my client of her basic rights. I am sure it was just a big mistake and you are letting Emma Swan go home."

"Unlikely, as she is a murder suspect."

"What murder Gold? No body, no murder, no jail time. How much longer do you plan on keeping her here for nothing?! I am warning you, if you think about breaking the 72 hour limit, I'll have you buried underneath a mountain of legal problems before Leroy can finish a doughnut. Am I clear?"

"Perfectly. Except you see, I just finished a call with the district attorney and we are pressing charges."

Emma looked at Regina in alarm.

"For what?"

"Your little client here is a working girl and is a flight risk."

"She is not a prostitute. She works as a bail bondsperson."

"Tell that to the judge dearie."

"Detective, with all due respect, could you leave? I have some time left with my client. I'll talk to you later," Regina said indicating the doors. As he made no moves to leave, she opened the door for him, "There's no time like right now detective," her firm voice barely hid the annoyance as she made a show out of checking her watch for time.

"Regina, I think these hopeless cases are beneath you. Why don't you go home and I here will take care of our Miss Swan," at Regina's not amused look, he just mumbled, "You are lucky I also want to go home for some well deserved rest."

"Oh yes, I'm sure you worked really hard today on finding some new circumstantial or bogus evidence against my client." As they walked out Regina saw Nolan pointing to a pixie blonde standing by the reception. She motioned to Emma she'll be right back and walked with Gold.

"You know you'll have to tell me why are you so hung up on Emma Swan detective Gold."

"Oh the suspension Regina! Perhaps I simply dislike… the murderous attitude."

"Aha, sure. We have more urgent matters at hand," Regina said crossing her arms in a no-nonsense attitude. "My priority now is to get her a somewhat good night of sleep. So, I want her in her own cell, no drunk homeless people or prostitutes to gang up on her. I am sure you haven't planned on her having a proper legal counsel when you put her through this torture, but I tell you now Gold, she better have some sleep and not a hair misplaced when I come and see her tomorrow." She let that sink in a bit. "You don't want to put your department through even more trouble than it inevitably awaits you all after this appalling misconduct."

Gold looked at her for a moment and then went on like he has zero fucks to give. "Of course, dearie! Now, I don't know what you are talking about, Miss Swan was perfectly fine and didn't complain at all."

"That is because she hasn't said _anything_ at all to you or your army of trolls."

"No need to get nasty, you will get what you ask," he said as if she was the one talking nonsense and paraded off to his lair. Regina turned to Tink. "You have everything?"

"Yes, I think she'll be fine for now. I got her also some toiletries and extra warm pair of comfy slacks and shirts to spend the night, sneakers and socks." Tink picked up the bag and handed it to Regina. "Is she alright?" Regina just nodded.

"Thanks Tink. You can go, it's almost 1 am. I'll give her this, make sure she is fine, and leave as well. Let's have a meeting in the office at 9:30 tomorrow. I'll bring Henry to school first so I'll be a bit late to the office"

"No problem, boss. Taxi is waiting for me outside. See you in the morning."

As Regina went back to see Emma, she saw Leroy had a big fresh box from Dunkin' Donuts at his desk. With a smile she took a napkin and grabbed one.

"Miss Swan?" Emma was hunched over with her head on the desk. "Miss Swan?" She wasn't moving, so Regina laid her hand gently on Emma's shoulder. "Miss Swaaan. Come on."

Emma roused from sleep with a jerk and looked at Regina panicky, "Oh my God, sorry Ms. Mills, I think I…"

"That is alright. Here, have a doughnut before going to bed. Nolan will lead you to a cell where you'll be by yourself and can sleep a bit more relaxed. Here's some clothes for you to change."

"Bed? Thank you Regina, I'm so tired."

"I know, I know." Regina picked up her pen and paper from the desk and said, "Before you go, write me your address. I'll go and pick up a couple of things for you to change if needed. And here is my card. In case you need me, just call. I'll come back tomorrow."

"Thank you Regina… I... "

"I know, you're tired. You are repeating yourself Miss Swan." Regina said and took the paper from Emma to put in her bag. "Wait here."

"Nolan!" Regina called, "We are ready."

Officer came in and just to be sure, Regina issued some threats and orders, while watching him lead Emma out of the room. The tall blonde really was beautiful. As Regina watched them leave down the corridor, Emma turned around for a second. Their eyes met, and Regina's heart skipped for just one, almost unnoticeable, beat. It's because, Regina has decided, this Emma Swan is innocent and she will get her out of this mess.


	3. Alone

Regina adored making an entrance. It was something she did whenever she would walk into a courthouse, whenever she had a meeting with clients, a parent-teacher conference or a date. She loved to make people anticipate her arrival, and she was sure to reward her spectators with a click of her heels, sharp look and threatening (some would say sultry, but who is she to brag) sound of her greetings. More than often she drew her strength from the power of her presence. Therefore, it was perhaps lucky that there was no one awake in her house that night to witness her completely non-elegant stumble through the door.

Ashley woke up after she entered the living room, hastily said her goodbyes and rushed off home. Regina didn't often admit it, but she was grateful to have a kind soul like her living close by and willing to put up with Regina's demanding hours.

To be fair, Henry was a wonderful child. When one takes that into account, Ashley was probably overpaid.

He was sleeping like an angel. One look at his pretty face and Regina would switch her attorney scowl into a full-blown stereotypical Mom smile. She checked his blankets, left a kiss on his forehead feeling a bit guilty for coming home so late, and then left downstairs to grab something from the fridge before going to bed. She chose some olives, purred herself a glass of wine and finally, finally, with a soft groan took off her heels and raised her feet on the sofa pillow. Heaven.

Chewing on the fresh fruit and feeling the softness and the warmth of her living room, her thoughts went back to her beautiful blonde murder suspect.

Miss Swan was in a bit of a pickle, what with Gold going at her like a hungry dog for a bone, what with her highly unlikely story that no one in their right minds would just believe without questioning. In addition, yes, there were some questions Regina really needed an answer to before going to court, but the blonde was not in any capacity to continue tonight, that much was clear. She mentioned special set of skills. Regina needed to know what exactly those entail and how Miss Swan enquired them. She needs all the names on that boat she can find, full background on both Swan and Jones who probably comes with a very long list of people who wanted him out of the game.

Ah yes, and they need to talk about her previous criminal records. She really hoped it's something simple and not sinister, otherwise, well, Regina will have to spend a lot of time on this case. Indeed, it does smell like it could get big if they fish out that body, and it's not like she has empty schedule right now. There were a couple of simple items on her agenda, which she could always pass forward to Kathryn. Two of them were friends, well… friendly, and Kat usually has some debt or another to pay back to Regina, so she could collect now if need be.

Taking a sip of wine, Regina took her phone and typed requests and reminders for Tink.

Ah, the most important item for tomorrow - file a complaint.

Regina wasn't afraid to send internal affairs after Gold. She was familiar with his methods, and did not like them one bit. Personally she would be pleased to see him bow down, but even more so, she was just plain angry at the entire system. He was allowed, no questions asked, to put that woman through hell based on nothing. At certain point, whatever idea, justifiable or not, he had in his thick skull about crimes Miss Swan committed, keeping her cold and tired was just plain cruel. Tactics of North Korea should not fly in the middle of Boston.

Obviously, Tink will also need to check where her client and detective Gold have crossed paths before. Perhaps the bails bondsperson stepped on his toes in the line of duty.

Taking another sip, Regina closed her eyes.

How come she is so sure that this woman, who was by all indications quite a loner in her life, who managed to tell one of more preposterous stories Regina had the opportunity to hear recently, who had a very obviously a bit of a shady past was innocent? How come that Miss Swan managed to convince her with one look of her eyes she had done nothing wrong?

Perhaps Regina was just inclined to stand by next to her in face of obvious misogyny those fine officers of the 11th percent demonstrated? In the end, it doesn't really matter.

Even if she is wrong, her client still deserves the best defence she can get.

Happy with her conclusion, Regina finished her wine.

* * *

Emma woke up with a sudden jerk, for five blissful seconds not realising where she was. Then it hit her. Realisation also truly physically pained her.

She was alone in a cell. Alone, with a burning cut on her back. She clutched at her head as memories of the last couple of days rushed back. Jones, the yacht, the cold, Gold, Regina Mills… Regina Mills. She pulled the sleeve of someone else's sweater, feeling the soft material, when her eyes went back to the bag Officer Nolan left in the corner for her. Again, she depends on the mercy of others. Experience tells her that is bad, very bad. To her horror, her eyes filled with tears and a soft cry escaped her lips. She covered her mouth and wiped the several drops that managed to escape.

Fuck, get yourself together Emma, this is not the time, you're not 16 anymore. Never is the right time in this situation.

The bag.

Ms Mills gave her clothes, but Nolan made sure she keeps them. She will have to thank the guy eventually, she unwillingly admitted to herself. After all, kindness is always in such short supply.

There was a lot of noise coming from outside of the jail, the light was already streaming through the windows. She must have slept for at least several hours. God, that felt good, she though before deciding that she needs to stop the waves of sadness and fear determine her actions if she wants to have any chance of getting out of here on bail.

Bail. She'll see with August, surely he will have no problem stepping in for one of his own. With a puff of breath, she admitted she probably should have made an effort and actually met the people in that agency, technically her co-workers, perhaps at least by showing up for the last year's Christmas party she was invited to. Too late now.

Well, there isn't much she can do now. Perhaps go through all the events since Thursday to make sure she doesn't forget anything important. If all goes well, she won't need to recount for details too many times, but there is a very big chance Gold will get what he wants, especially if he decides to build the case against her without looking at anybody else. She clenched her fists in frustration.

What does he have against her? Did she do something to him in previous life? In this life? She was trying to remember if there was a case, someone she busted in the line of work, perhaps someone from her childhood? She went through many families but she never lived with anyone with that last name. However, she was fairly sure she saw him before... if only she could just place him. She wanted her computer and an internet access so badly. If she could have 10 minutes to check him, she would know.

Perhaps she should just share all this with her lawyer. Regina probably has access to records, perhaps she could crosscheck. Heck, perhaps she already did it, and she knows what is behind all of this.

Regina Mills left a strong impression the minute she saw her. While some of their conversation was a bit blurry in her mind, image of Regina felt very clear. She was just so… beautiful and, well, cool. And she probably wouldn't appreciate such mundane descriptions of herself. She was sophisticated and smart. She was that A-type of woman Emma always secretly dreamed about dating. She would love it if she could one day get to undress someone like Regina Mills, touch her lips and kiss her neck while whispering words of adoration.

Emma laughed.

Sure. Whatever. Warning to self: no crushing on hot lawyers who might be your only ticket out of here. And who probably lead a fancy life somewhere, married to a doctor, are so out of your league it's not even funny, and, lastly, to whom you'll probably be indebted for the next 20 years.


	4. Silk

Emma was waiting in a small meeting room inside the courthouse, fidgeting with the sleeve of the simple black blazer and nervously checking the clock on the wall counting down minutes. She is scheduled to go in front of a judge for a bail hearing and according to young officer outside, her lawyer is supposed to meet her a minute ago. She is still to hear a word from her after yesterday night.

Perhaps Ms. Mills came to her senses and is quitting her. No, she wouldn't do that without saying anything, not yet anyway. There's plenty of time. Perhaps once she finds out more about Emma's not really impressive track record in life, she'll figure out there are better things to do.

Wow, easy on the self-pity Swan, it is not very attractive. Emma brushed her fingers through her washed hair, pleased that at least she doesn't look as pathetic as the night before.

A second later her lawyer swooped in like some kind of a Dior wearing saviour, and it didn't matter Emma knew she was coming, it didn't matter she promised herself not to care, a breath still managed to escape her.

"Good afternoon Miss Swan," Regina said with a modest smile while taking her seat opposite of Emma. "I see you're looking better today."

"Ms. Mills, hi, yes. Mmm thank you… for that. For… making sure I get some sleep."

"No need to thank me Miss Swan, we can't have you fainting in the middle of the courtroom, can't we?" Regina said with only a twinkle in her eye indicating she was interested in Emma's well-being for reasons more than just Emma embarrassing her in front of the judge was. "I am pleased you managed to get yourself cleaned up and refreshed."

"Well… yes. I mean, thank you for clothes too."

The lawyer just leaned her head on the side, opened her tablet and said to her client, "We have several issues that we need to discuss before we see the judge. First problem is the judge itself. I have previous experience with this person. While he is not a complete moron, he is also very conservative, has outdated views on women and he won't make my job easy. Understand?"

Regina waited to make sure the information properly sank until Emma nodded in confirmation.

"Secondly, my associate is waiting for you to give us the website you used to set up your fake profile. The district attorney's office probably already got it from Gold, since I'm sure they are using it for the case. Please type in the URL here." Regina passed the tablet to Emma who, feeling very conscious about the fact her lawyer will soon see her catalogue of underwear shots, typed in the address.

"Ms. Mills, are we being monitored here? Would you mind if I use this to check something?"

"Not now, Miss Swan, we are very limited with time. Perhaps later if needed."

If needed. Meaning, if she doesn't get out. Goody. She slid the tablet back to Regina and decided she had been slut shamed quite enough by the men around her, so she will look Ms. Mills in the eyes and own her actions without being embarrassed. After all, she is successful in what she does in part because she can do… that. She also had to admit to herself, perhaps she also wanted the lawyer to be a little bit impressed as well. Not that it mattered.

Taking the tablet Regina raised her eyebrows as the website opened at the images of Miss Swan posing quite alluringly in black silk and lace. No wonder Jones hired this "Dark Swan" persona with little questions asked. Her creamy skin was glowing in the blue and grey light as she stood in front of curtained window, hair cascading in soft waves. She could see the muscles of her stomach and her arms. She mentioned swimming. Well, she clearly wasn't lying. Her face was half covered by a lacy mask that just served to offset the redness of slightly opened lips. God, she was breathtaking.

"I take it this is a work of a professional photographer, not a friend holding an iPhone?"

"Yes, it was a professional."

"And you have maintained this… cover successfully for a while?"

"Aha, at least two years. I need the bait every now and then, so I get the site online when needed, modify the content to fit the target."

Regina maintained her cool façade and copy pasted the address to a message to Tink. "We will see what we can do with this."

She left her tablet on the table and once again turned her full attention to the blond in front of her. "Tell me about your criminal record Miss Swan."

Emma intertwined her fingers. "Wow, straight to the point."

"Well, can you blame me? Tick tock Miss Swan," said Regina noticing Emma's obvious and not surprising discomfort with the topic.

Emma took a deep breath and started, "I was 17, silly, naïve girl trying to get by after leaving my last foster family. I got involved with an older guy after trying to steal his car. His name was Neal Cassidy and he was a thief. He convinced me… no, he seduced me is perhaps a bit more accurate description of what happened."

"How old was he?" Regina interrupted with an obvious question.

"27 at the time we met."

Emma lowered her hands into her lap so that Regina doesn't notice just how uncomfortable she was with the story. How can she feel embarrassed, Regina wondered, when it was obvious to everyone that this is statutory rape.

"I know what you're thinking. Yes, he is in jail, but not for anything like that. Not for… girls. He... He planned a job. Local post office in Tallahassee. Really easy one, in and out, he promised. I was outside waiting thinking it was all so romantic, and then I heard shots and I knew immediately how stupid I was. He carried a gun and someone got hurt. An older men died in the hospital. Police got me a minute later in his car outside of the scene, they found me in shock. And he, he just left me there alone and ran."

"You testified?"

"Aha… eventually they promised me a lighter sentence. I still got 9 months in detention. I was so young and stupid and lucky it didn't end worse for me."

Regina pursed her lips, "Oh Miss Swan, you were very obviously failed by the system and at such young age. But that does not mean…"

"Doesn't it? You really think this time will be different?"

"This time you have me."

Their eyes met, and god help her, but Emma believed her. On the other side of the table Regina tried to hide the fact she was very much chastising herself for making promises like that. What is her problem? This entire situation is so up in the air she shouldn't really say anything like that until it becomes a bit clearer.

"Miss Swan, I'm not going to lie to you or try to make this situation look rosy. We will have a pair of worthy opponents in that courtroom, both judge and the district attorney on your case are problematic characters. They are also in a good relationship with Gold. Now this case is still not about murder, but change could happen every minute. Besides that, can you think who else would want to harm Jones?"

"Who wouldn't? The guy has enemies literally everywhere. Another drug group, parents of kids he sold to could be dangerous? He had a string of ex-girlfriends and more bad habits then I could count. Those guys on that boat were quiet and quick and they knew what they were doing. If they were contractors, the culprit could be anyone."

Regina raised her eyebrows, "That is literally more or less the angle my office is taking and already investigating. We have a private detective we sometimes work with, I'll see what he can find."

"Well, if you could get me some internet access, I might be able to help."

Regina had a perfect smirk on. "First we deal with prostitution Miss Swan, and then we deal with the missing gangster."

Lawyer broke the eye contact to check her watch. "It's almost time. You know how these type of hearings go?" At Emma's wordless confirmation, Regina continued, "Just let me do the talking and we'll see. The prostitution charges won't stick once we get some evidence of your work, so don't be worried about that in the long-term."

"Ms. Mills? Can I ask you something?"

"You want me to get you some coffee?"

Emma smiled at her mini-joke. "Well, I would never say no to a cup of coffee. But no, I was wondering, if I stay in jail today, would you be so kind to send someone to my apartment? You see, I have a cat."

Regina looked at her in surprise. "Really? I would have pegged you as a dog person."

"You wouldn't be far off. I love dogs, but cats are independent and resilient. Especially mine, so I'm sure she's been fine for now by herself."

"Say no more. I'll add pet rescuer to my firm's job description."

"I'm sure that will get you a new stream of revenue."

"I'm assuming the key is under the mat?"

"Close enough. It's in the panel behind the corridor plant," Emma cringed. "To be fair Ms. Mills, except for my computer that is useless to people with no hacking skills, I don't have much for burglars to steal."

Regina paused and went dead serious again. "You know that if they press charges for Jones, police will manage a warrant to search your place."

"They can be my guest. The only slightly embarrassing thing in my apartment I keep in the drawer of my bedside table," Emma deadpanned before realizing how Regina might not find the comment amusing. Her eyes winded, but Regina remained seemingly chilled.

"Very funny Miss Swan."

"Sorry," Emma blushed just a bit, and then immediately asked herself, what the fuck? She is here blushing in front of this woman like some innocent maid, and 5 minutes ago she was showing her sexy half naked pictures. And she already promised herself, no crushing on hot lawyers. Bad Emma.

"It's time to go. I'll call the guard."

* * *

Sitting there in the courtroom waiting for the hearing to start, Emma was feeling more and more agitated. There were not a lot of people present for the hearing, mostly security in the room and Gold sitting in the back of the room with another police officer. Her lawyer was quietly discussing with an imposing Anthony Hopkins look-alike to her right whom Emma vaguely recognized from either her files, or newspapers. Doors to the room opened and in walked a definitely familiar face of dashing August Booth. Emma tried to catch his eyes, but he kept his focus in front of himself. That did not exactly fill her with confidence.

Regina took her seat whispering to Emma, "Right. Spencer isn't budging. Emma, just stay calm."

Emma made a barely visible sign of acknowledgment, straightened her posture and lift up her head. She did nothing wrong, and she will not slouch in embarrassment like she did when she was in this situation 14 years ago.

"All rise", went through the courtroom and as they stood up, the bailiff continued, "Honorable Judge Sidney Glass presiding."

"You may be seated," said Glass looking in interest to the defense bench.

"Mr. Spencer, what do we have now?"

"Your honor, the state wishes for you to deny bail for Emma Swan, currently facing charges for prostitution. She is a high flight risk with no stable relationships within the community and with a habit of changing addresses."

"Mr. Spencer, that is a bit unusual. What do you mean when you say _currently_ facing charges?" asked Glass.

"Your honor, if I may? I might shed some light on this" Regina interrupted Spencer before he got a word out. "The public attorney's office want to keep my client in jail because they are seeking to charge her for a crime they are not even sure took place. Miss Swan is, in fact, not a prostitute, which we can easily prove. She is a bail bondsperson, highly respected in her field of work and this exercise today is simply appalling."

"You honor," Spencer continued, "do other people in bail bond business have a website listing the price for their sexual services? No, I don't think they do. Do they also go by aliases? I don't think so. The website of our Dark Swan, which is how Miss Swan poetically calls herself, even lists the references of her former associates, which is to say other working girls, and may I add that in the room today with us is the owner of the agency Miss Swan supposedly works for as a bail bondsperson. He has never even seen this person before in real life."

"Technically Albert, that might be true but that does not mean Miss Swan doesn't have a clear record of previous apprehensions throughout the years which she conducted for Mr. Booth's agency. I am curious to see if you can provide this court with one name from the alleged list of Miss Swan's sex clients. Let me answer that, no you cannot. In fact, her work as a bail bondsperson can easily be proven, her work as a prostitute cannot be and you know it Spencer. Your honor, my client is a private person and keeps to herself, which is not a crime. In addition to that, Miss Swan has been held in custody since early hours of Sunday in devastating conditions inside the 11th precinct. Frankly, this court needs to apologize to Miss Swan and immediately let her go."

Spencer wouldn't have it, he was looking at Regina like she was being unreasonable and then he barked, "Your Honor, may we approach the bench?"

Glass waved his hand, "Be my guests."

Regina crossed her arms and looked at Spencer, "Really Albert, what are you trying to achieve here?"

"I am trying to achieve that we keep this woman in custody for the time being," he answered and turned to the judge, "Ms. Mills' client is a high risk case your honor. She is a prime suspect in what will very soon be a full-blown murder investigation of a criminal Killian Jones. She was found after she swam from a boat that was caught on fire with all sorts of evidence the state will be ready to present. For now we want to keep her where we can see her."

"You are pushing it there Albert," said the judge but then consented, "however, this woman really is a bit of a risk, Regina, and you have to admit it. I don't see any evidence to support her ties in the community. Nothing. No husband, no fiancé, and a lot of problematic behavior, what with this sexual website," he said with an obvious distaste.

"Would it help if she stays with me? I can vouch for her," Regina blurted out before she actually understood what she was offering.

"That is very noble Ms. Mills, but that is not how it works," said Spencer.

"Is it not Albert? And I suppose your tactics here today are how 'it works'? Detective Gold's as well?"

"That is all, both of you," Judge Glass interrupted. "I've heard enough."

When Regina turned to go back to her seat with a scrunched forehead, Emma's heart sunk a little bit. All right, that round was probably lost, but they expected as much, so chin up.

Sitting next to her client, Regina felt an overwhelming need to show her client some support and encouragement. For a moment, her fingers itched to touch Miss Swan's hand, or her shoulder. Clearly out of the question.

Sidney Glass continued, "Miss Swan, I agree with the district attorney that with your particular lifestyle there is little evidence to support that you will not disappear into thin air. So, you will stay in police custody for another 48 hours. This is all you are getting Spencer. If the state does not produce any substantial evidence to further charge this woman you will have to let her go."

"Your honor, the defense is objecting."

"I am taking that into consideration Ms. Mills. Adjourned."

He left the room before they managed to stand up as Regina leaned closer to Emma. "I'm sorry Miss Swan."

"It's fine. We knew this might happen", Emma said bowing her head.

"Hey," Regina turned towards her until her knee softly brushed Emma's tight and their eyes met again. "Don't worry," Regina she smiled, "I'll go and feed your cat. Is there anything else you might need?"

"No, thank you."

As she was looking at Regina with a mix of gratitude and a little bit of apprehension, hyper aware of a light point of contact underneath the table, security guard came to take her back. She swallowed at the response she found in brown eyes. They seemed to be sending her all the mushy signals of support the lawyer wasn't saying. Stay strong, I've got your back.

"Emma?" came a male voice.

Well, if they had a moment, it was interrupted by Booth.

"I'm sorry Emma, I tried to explain to them how we work but… they weren't really interested and I couldn't lie to them… We never actually met in person… and I…"

"It's okay August, I understand." Emma said looking at him, "I didn't really make an effort to… meet, and it was stupid of me."

The guard came at that moment to escort her away.

"I'll see you Emma."

"Bye August. See you later Ms. Mills?"

"See you later Miss Swan," Regina replied and as Emma walked away accompanied by the guard, she shifted her focus to the man in the purple shirt, "I need to talk to you and get everything you have on Killian Jones."

"Of course Ms. Mills. I'll send you our file."

"Excellent. I want it yesterday."

"Understood." Booth said wondering how on Earth is this woman managing to make him feel like a schoolboy answering to the teacher. Perhaps it's easier to achieve when the object of her stare has some guilt on his shoulder, like he does now.

"Mr. Booth, did you know what she was going into when she went for that boat? Did you have anything to do with what happened on the boat?"

Regina looked at August Booth with all the concentration and intensity she could muster.

"No… but I… never mind."

"What Mr. Booth? May I remind you that Emma is facing some serious charges in they find Jones?"

"Well, I guess I feel guilty. I've read our file on him, saw his face and though he will right up Emma's alley. She often handled difficult cases, but never before someone from the world of organized crime. I should have known better."

"Do you think that it was a coincidence? Miss Swan getting Jones?"

August looked at her confused, "Well... yes. What else could it be?"

"I'm just looking into different avenues," Regina answered calmly.

"You don't think I was the one setting her up?"

"Relax Mr. Booth. What I think doesn't matter. What I make a jury believe is what matters."

August unexpectedly grinned, "You are a real piece of work Ms. Mills. I'm glad you're Emma's lawyer."

As Regina turned around there was Gold, leaning on his cane looking all smug.

"You'll be hearing from me Mr. Booth," she dismissed August before turning her attention to the menace.

"What do you want detective?"

"Now Regina that is not to way to greet an older gentleman."

"You are not a gentlemen."

She decided she doesn't want to talk to him right now and continued on her way out of the courtroom thinking she can just speed-walk away from him to cause some more annoyance. As she gained distance, she hear him call after her, "Oh Regina! A little bird told me you've been sending post to the internal affairs. You would be wise to stop with your futile games!"

She just laughed at him, "Good luck for your little talk with them Gold. I wonder how many of those complaints can they tolerate annually before they grow tired of you."

As she was rushing down the stairs, she took her phone and dialled office. "Tink? Yes, as expected… No, I have to stop somewhere first and then I'll come. Call Graham, tell him I have some work for him and he should stop by around 6 but not later. I promised Henry I'll be on time today."

Regina hailed a cab and gave the driver the address her blonde client currently called home. There was a hungry cat waiting for her.

* * *

"Mom, there is a cat on our stairs," Henry said sounding a bit shell-shocked.

"Yes, I see her."

"Well, she is fluffy and alive and just sitting there. Mom? How come we have a live cat on our stairs?" He hasn't moved an inch since walking through the door looking at the cat like it might disappear if he blinks. Her Henry is just too cute.

"Henry dear, don't get too excited. We are cat-sitting for my client who is in jail at the moment. I wasn't going just leave poor Mal hungry and alone."

Henry's excitement was growing exponentially before her eyes. " _We_ are cat-sitting? Her name is Mal? Can I play with her?"

"Yes to all… but take off your shoes and coat."

He was already cuddling the cat by the time she finished the sentence. Regina thanked heavens that the creature was quite domesticated and seemed to enjoy the attention, otherwise it would be difficult with an enthusiastic eight year old in his high-energy mode and an annoyed feline.

"Yes, shoes, coat, got it mom!"

Regina rolled her eyes listening to him going all mushy over the cat. If this works too well, she'll have to re-examine the no-pet policy of the Mills household.

An hour later Mal was happily playing with a woolly ball while Henry and Regina were finishing their dinner together. The precocious boy was looking at his mother like she saved the galaxy again. "Mom, if your client doesn't get out of jail, can we keep Mal?"

"Well Henry, that is just ridiculous question because my client is innocent and I would very much like if she could continue with her life as soon as possible with her cat to keep her company."

"So, you like your client?" Henry asked with his big eyes and toothy grin.

"Yes, Miss Swan is a smart woman, but life wasn't very kind to her."

"Then I'm happy we are cat-sitting for her. Mom, you'll get her out, won't you?"

"I hope so dear."

"And perhaps we can be friends to her and Mal then, and they could visit us sometimes."

"Perhaps." Regina half-agreed, not wanting to go into lengthy explanation of how professional relationships work.

Mal seemed to have a thing for the staircase, so she was happy to sleep there after Henry managed to literally tire her out with games and petting. Mother and son each worked their own paperwork, content in sharing the living room. Regina would look at her son every now and then just to enjoy how animated he was even while doing simple homework. After they said their good nights, Regina picked up her glass of wine and her tablet and laid on her couch, thinking about Henry's proposal.

While friendship with Emma Swan wasn't something that sounded like a likely result of their current client-lawyer situation, Regina found herself very… intrigued with the blonde. The most likely reason, aside from the case, was that her client was a peculiar kind of an introvert. Regina liked her kind smile, deep tone of her voice and a delicate balance she struck between being, well, a badass survivor and a sensitive victim of circumstances beyond her control.

She went into her apartment earlier today to get the cat and pack some clothes as she promised to do on their first meeting. Miss Swan's apartment was small, cosy and warm, but strangely impersonal. There were no pictures on the wall of friends and family members and no displayed trinkets from travels, no postcards or fridge magnets. As if the former foster child was prepared to leave the place at any given time, Regina realized.

"Mal? Maaal?" Regina called for the cat while observing her surroundings. The sofa looked comfortable and pillows looked a bit run down from the use in front of a TV set. MIss Swan probably binges on Netflix and chills.

On the shelf, there were some books and DVDs, nothing particularly notable, some Kerouac, some science fiction, Battlestar Galactica set and Star Wars trilogy. Her son and her client would get along just fine there.

Regina entered the bedroom. Bed was not made and was quite messy.

She wondered whether that was because Miss Swan is a restless sleeper or because she had some company before going on her ill-advised venture. Then she noted the bedside table and thought about the likely content of the small drawer. Unwanted images of Miss Swan in her underwear pleasuring herself on that bed filled her vision before the left side of her brain managed to kick in. She blushed at inappropriate thoughts and took a deep breath, immediately annoyed at herself.

"Get a grip Regina," she muttered. This was ridiculously stupid. She doesn't even know her client properly, she has only seen her twice. She is not even a lesbian… well, perhaps she should rethink that part considering the sexual nature of her milliseconds long fantasize. She pinched the bridge of her nose, took a moment, and then marched to the closet, opened it and quickly selected a couple of outfits for Emma. Right, she will need some underwear. For a second Regina entertained a thought of just going to the shopping mall and selecting something that would be a bit more impersonal instead of going through the drawers.

Stop behaving like a teenage boy, Regina warned herself with her mother's voice in her head. OK, so that is how she regains focus, it's perfectly normal.

She opened the first drawer of the cabinet and predictably, found a bunch of unsorted underwear. Mentally she added Marie Kondo on the list of possible Christmas presents for Miss Swan and then selected a couple of plain cotton sets that would be appropriate for sitting in jail. Funny, Regina. Now, the cat.

Sitting on her own sofa couple of hours later with mission accomplished and Mal nearby, Regina had no choice but to think about her actions and… reactions. Sure, physically, she would definitely describe Emma Swan as very attractive. The woman looked like a model. It's a little wonder she didn't have crowds of adoring fans serenading her under her balcony. Especially after seeing those pictures on the website.

Pictures.

She knew she shouldn't, she really shouldn't. Tablet was mocking her on her knees while she was sipping her wine and contemplating all the valid justifications for detailed examination of her client's fake escort website.

Damn it all to hell.

She picked it up and typed in the in the browser… and there she was. Regina took a bigger sip and swallowed slowly.

Her client. Her half-naked, beautiful client.

In the privacy of her house, Regina felt that the level of tantalizing attractiveness of the photos on the website went sky high. Feasting on the view of pale skin clad in the silky lingerie Regina was adamant that this is a perfectly understandable and acceptable action on her part. After all, this website was a big part of why Emma got stuck in jail for another 48 hours.

Is this really how Emma dresses when she wants to seduce? Or is it really restricted just to her Dark Swan character? Her underwear drawer seemed to suggest that privately Emma is more of a cotton kind of girl. Not that _that_ wouldn't look attractive on her.

Whoa… That whole thought was way out of line. She cannot actually be considering the underwear her client wears and not wears, and she definitely wasn't supposed to notice the content of the drawer inside Emma's apartment. She shouldn't have opened it in the first place. She should have just gone to the mall.

Hell.

Regina took another sip of wine.

The cursor on the screen was pointing to the "more" button, mocking her. Does she really want to know what Emma had listed under her services?

She needed something stronger to drink for that decision. She went up, poured herself a glass of homemade cider, and took a sip while looking at the bloody tablet displaying the front page. OK, just this time. It's for learning.

 _Sensual and curious blonde, interested in long entertaining sessions and intense encounters with men and women who want to explore their boundaries._

Regina's heart skipped a bit as she took another sip.

This is stupid. Miss Swan said she modifies the website when she needs it and adapts it to fit the mark. This says nothing about her client. Nothing at all. It's all fake pretend. She might or she might not be interested in both men and women. In any case, it's not a question Regina should be considering unless it comes up during the trial.

But what about me, Regina though. Perhaps that is the question she needs to be considering about herself.

She slowly went through her list of failed relationships and one-night stands with different men. She never tried to date a woman. Of course, she was bi-curious or bi. That she couldn't possibly deny even before she met the stunning damsel in distress.

Regina smirked to herself at the title she gave Miss Swan which, she was certain, would not be appreciated. Oh well, what Miss Swan doesn't know, won't hurt her.

She tried to imagine what it would feel like to really, truly, date a woman. Her mother would probably get a heart attack, and Henry… Henry wouldn't mind. He is a young boy with a kind heart. Her prince.

Yes, that is where her focus should stay. Her son. And not non-existent girlfriends.

Regina closed the website and finished her drink.


	5. Cotton

N/A: Thank you everyone for your kind comments and favs/follows. It really motivates me to write, re-write and publish my story :) I am a first time writer and to actually start doing this took a lot of courage. Now I can say that I'm really enjoying the process and these will keep on coming.

* * *

Regina walked into her office building, big bag and coffee in one hand, her smart phone in the other. Scrolling through the news in the elevator she saw the headline: 'Criminal known as Captain Hook still at large after a boat explosion Saturday'.

OK, no body yet, but police is extensively fishing in the area, and with the unfavourable winds, they could soon find him. As far as Regina was concerned, he might as well be fish food instead, but that would be too good of an ending for that trouble-maker. Speaking of which, finding out more about him and his list of enemies is high on her team's agenda.

"Good morning Regina."

"Good morning Tink. How are you today?" Regina replied and went into her office without waiting to find out. She freed her hands and took off her trench coat.

"Tink, have we heard from Graham yet?" she half-yelled through the door. Second later Tink was at the door with her iPad and a smile on her face.

"I'm very well, thank you. No, we haven't yet. I'll message him to confirm the meeting for tomorrow afternoon as we agreed yesterday, and check if there are any news in between. However, we have to give him some time."

"That is alright, I'll give him a call," Regina replied taking her seat behind the massive desk.

Petite assistant tilted her head.

"Alriiiight. Sure. First, your mother called, very angry, mentioning Gold. I tried to tell her you died, but she wouldn't take it, understandably."

Regina just rolled her eyes, lifting her hand in a dismissive gesture.

"I'll tell her you moved states next time. Also, Kathryn called, she heard about our case. I said you are quite busy, but that I'll promise to do everything in my power to book you for a lunch date."

"You are doing admirably today Tink," Regina smiled, "and you can tell her we could meet at 1 pm for a quick lunch. She gets 45 minutes in one of the places in the street downstairs. She can choose or you book something, I don't care."

"Great. I'm on a roll today," Tink said through a smile.

"Congratulations. How are we with the police investigation?"

At that Tink took a seat opposite of Regina and brought up notes on her tablet.

"So… We know for sure that the police matched the blood under one of Emma's fake nails to Jones. Prosecution is also not disputing the evidence of a struggle, and, according to Spencer's office, will claim that the laceration on Emma's back is in fact from Jones's… thing," said Tink making a stupid gesture of a hook with her right hand. Regina just raised one eyebrow, while her assistant continued, "They are so far preparing a narrative of her being on a job, stuff got heated, there was a fight, and she killed him, and then created an explosion to cover it all up. The boat and what was left were dragged off by crime scene team. They are still working on it."

"Is there anything about a missing arm?"

"Nope, no missing arms for now. Just a missing body."

"Alright, I suppose we can only wait and see whether anything shows up. How are you with Emma's foster records?"

"I got it all. Sending it to you now. And I'm also sending you files that came from August Booth's agency earlier this morning. I've glanced through, there's not much there."

While Tink was typing away on her tablet, Regina was scrolling through her e-mail. Outlook alerted her to Tink's message. She opened a first large PDF.

"Let me know if you want it in print, I have everything on my desk."

"This is fine, thank you," Regina said slowly, distracted by a picture of young Emma on her screen. First file contained information on nine different homes Emma changed before she got into trouble. Regina took a deep breath.

"Do we have anything on this Neal Cassidy character?"

"Graham already delivered something on that. He is in a minimum-security prison in Jacksonville, Florida, serving 15 to 20 years for a second degree murder. In fact, next year he'll be up for parole."

"We need to check if he still holds a grudge against Emma, if he had any involvement with anyone connected to Jones, is he a type of guy to risk an early release… things like that. You never know."

"Graham is checking with the prison on his current state and rep."

"Good. Perhaps we will need to talk to this guy, but let's see when and if the charges are raised. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother going to Florida. Too hot."

"I think the weather is just fine there," said the New Zealander.

"I'm sure you do," Regina commented. "You probably think alligators are cute and adorable."

Tink just looked at her with lips pursed.

"We shall see. If the circumstances allow it and we do have to go, you can come with."

"Oh Regina, but I don't want Emma to be charged for murder. And I do want to go to the Sunshine State."

"What can I tell you? Humanity is tough."

Seeing Tink's pathetic expression, Regina decided to give her some crumbs, "Christmas holidays are coming up in three months. You can plan something."

"Thanks boss," Tink said not impressed.

"Finally, how is Graham doing with the list of alternative suspects?"

"He hasn't mention anything yet."

"Thanks Tink, good work. I have some things to do here and I'll be in court to finish with the Mother Superior case before lunch."

"I take it she finally said yes to a plea deal?"

"Yes, finally."

Tink stood up to leave when she noticed the mega shopping bag on the sofa. "You did some shopping?"

Regina replied without looking up from the computer, "No, that is for Emma. I picked up some things for her. I'll go see her today or tomorrow morning."

"That is very nice of you."

"It was no bother," Regina flatly explained.

Tink took that as her queue to leave the office. As the door clicked, Regina took another deep breath. Yes, it was very nice of her. She also noticed that she failed to mention Mal to her assistant. God, she was already overly defensive about the whole thing, knowing for a fact that she is just doing the best she can for Miss Swan. Nothing more. Except she never before agreed to provide for a client's pet. Arghh. Whatever.

* * *

If Kathryn noticed anything unusual with Regina's mood, she said nothing. She was a smart woman, she appreciated Regina Mills and she knew better than to tell anything to Regina's face. No, if something was wrong, Kat learned to wait for Regina to broach the topic. Sometimes she would get lucky, most of the times she was left in the dark, but that was the sort of delicate friendship deal she had with the brunette.

So, let's talk business and Henry, a.k.a. safe topics, she thought as the waitress took their order.

"How is our little prince?"

"He is very good. I talked with his teacher last week again, and while he is still excellent in school, he is proving himself to be especially gifted in writing and art," Regina replied beaming with maternal pride.

"Oh my god, he is growing up so fast. You'll be filling out collage applications before you blink."

"Tell me about it."

"And that money laundering case? Did she take the deal?"

"Yes, finally, this morning I got it done," Regina replied sounding exasperated. "I tell you, if I had to spend one more hour with Her Holiness I would've needed my own lawyer."

Kat laughed imagining how their meetings must have looked. Regina's last client was very unpleasant woman who hilariously for everyone else who is not her lawyer, refused to acknowledge any wrongdoings. The woman used the convent she was running as a cover for her operations with some Ponzi scheming on the side. The only positive thing about it was that Regina felt good with charging every minute of extra time she wasted on the crazy bat.

"Well, I'm glad I never got that call. I assume I _would_ be your first call Regina in case you punched a client."

"Sure Kat."

"And how is the Swan case? I understand Spencer is adamant that he'll have her charged for Jones."

Regina paused looking at Kat while a waiter served their drinks.

"I didn't know you were interested."

That was actually a question with all the undertones of an order for Kat to explain her interest.

"Officer Nolan is my ex-boyfriend. He would've called me that night if his new girlfriend Mary hadn't insisted otherwise. She thinks very highly of you."

"Oh please, you don't need to talk to little birds and unicorns to know I'm the best choice, especially if Gold is involved."

"He told me he was very scared for Swan."

Regina got instantly very annoyed.

"Oh he was? Why didn't he do something, said something? Those pests left her in a jail with gang members and prostitutes, wearing next to nothing after she swam to the shore! Kat, she was wounded and cold and tired," Regina said stressing every word by tapping the table with her index finger.

Kat nodded, examining the napkin on her lap. She agreed, they have all already failed that woman and the case hasn't even started.

"It's a good thing she has you on her side."

"Agreed."

At that moment, Kat realized the possible seriousness of the case. It was important to Regina. This client was important. So, she will do what she can to help.

"Look, Regina, I don't want to defend David Nolan, and I don't know how the case will go, but if the worse comes to worse and it gets serious, you can count on my assistance, you know that."

"Thank you. I'm fine. I have Graham on the case and my assistant is working around the clock. I might need you to take another case off my hands. Nothing big. A young guy got into a fight and managed to put the other one in a hospital. But he's a good kid. Got provoked by the goons. I would've taken care of it, but if this thing gets any more complicated, the court dates will probably all coincide and I don't want to be distracted."

"Sounds fine, no problem. Let Tink know she can send me details."

Regina was pleased with that. Kathryn was a good colleague. She glanced at her phone – thirty-five more minutes left, and it didn't feel like a burden. As the food got served, she changed the topic of conversation to Kat's dating life. The blonde liked to share and always had a good amount of ridiculous anecdotes.

"So I went out with this fitness instructor. Can you imagine? He wanted to take me to see a new Bridget Jones film, thought I would like it. After talking to me for 20 minutes on the road to the cinema, he changed his mind and took me to see Snowden instead. He was so funny, and god he is hot…"

Her eyes sparkled while she was telling the story and Regina smiled.

* * *

Next morning the lawyer tried to maintain a small smile as she walked towards a cell where Emma Swan was spending her time. She clutched the bag handles and coffee she was carrying and tried to relax. She wanted to get to Emma the previous day, but she needed some time. Her client cannot notice any confusion on her part, and this state she managed to work herself into, like any other types of temporary insanities, needs to go.

First thing she hadn't planned is that the meeting room would be occupied, as otherwise the place was pretty quiet and Gold was out, undoubtedly working on finding the pretty boy's remains with all available personnel. Officer Whoever escorted her with an understandable amount of fuss to a space lighten by horrendous neon light. Her heels were echoing in the quiet space were Miss Swan was the only occupant. She stood outside of the bars as the officer opened the doors to let her in. Her client was inside laying on a bed, slowly getting herself up in a seating position as she noticed the doors sliding. Their eyes met and Emma smiled for a second.

Officer was standing there until Regina noticed him and dismissed him, "Thank you. You can leave now. Relax officer, we haven't planned a rescue mission."

He left and Regina took a step inside.

"You mind if I come in?"

"Not at all Ms. Mills," Emma said moving to the corner of the bed in case Regina decided to sit there. However, Regina choose a considerably less comfortable chair from the corner and pulled it closer.

"You have to forgive me, I would have offered you some tea and cookies, but I'm a bit limited here," Emma lightly joked, and Regina chuckled quietly and offered the cup.

"That is alright. This is for you. Sorry, it's a bit cold now, I got it from a nice coffee place close to my office building."

As Emma took the paper cup, their fingers lightly touched, and like in some cheap romantic period drama, Regina fought to suppress a tremble that spread down her body. Emma's face was all smile and happiness as she inhaled the beverage.

"Mmmm… This is heaven. Thank you." Emma closed her eyes, taking a blissful moment to enjoy the first sip.

"Don't mention it."

Regina absolutely hated how her voice sounded at that point. She cleared her throat and pointed to the bag. "I got you some fresh clothes and underwear. I chose simple cotton. Figured you'd prefer it."

Emma blushed. "Yes, that is a good guess. So, you've been to my place?"

"Yes."

"Is Mal OK?"

"Relax. She is taken care of. I took her to my place where she is being doted on by my very enthusiastic son."

Emma exhaled in relief.

"God, I feel I can only say 'thank you' so many times before words lose all meaning."

"It is alright, Miss Swan, really. I would have found some other way if needed but Henry is very gentle and kind with animals and two of them are getting along just fine."

Emma nodded, and in a couple of seconds, her eyes uncontrollably swelled with tears.

"I should have… I would have left her some extra food or asked a neighbour, but I didn't know, I never, I never expected that I will be here, that it will all go so terribly…"

"Miss Swan, breathe."

Emma lifted her hand to cover her face felling a bit ashamed at getting emotional in front of her very professional and put together lawyer.

"I'm sorry Ms. Mills, I'm normally less of a wreck."

"Well, I sure hope you are not normally spending your time locked in a prison cell."

Emma laughed looking at her coffee, while a single tear rolled down her cheek.

"Here."

She looked up and saw a paper tissue in front of her face. She took it with a smile, wiped her face and bravely looked back at Regina. Momentarily her breath got stuck somewhere deep in her chest. Her tough and so beautiful lawyer was looking at her with so much unguarded compassion that it stunned the blonde. No pity, just… acknowledgment and understanding.

Needing to say anything before she blurts out something super embarrassing, Emma asked about the case.

Regina explained in great lengths what she knows that the prosecutions has so far, while Emma paid attention. After going through all the known details, the lawyer concluded, "None of it matters if they don't produce the body, and they don't have much time left. They salvaged enough of the boat to also run some tests on the blood found and they are working on determining the source of the explosion."

"Ms. Mills, do you think I could get some sort of a device that connects online? I would very much like to help with the research and I have my ways of getting into some databases."

Regina looked at her, very unsure about what to do with the request. "If we are found out, we could get into a lot of trouble for cleaning evidence. Or rather, you would Miss Swan. And I think you are deep enough as it is."

"It's just… I really want to cross-check all my previous jobs to determine where Gold and I crossed paths. I swear, that night… I'm a bit blurry on the details, but they took me in the station. Nolan and some other guy, a real creep. I remember them taking my fingerprints and taking me to sit on a bench. Gold came in and saw me, walked by right next to me. It felt like he… like he recognized me. He went to talk to the officers and I think once he was sure who I was, once he got the confirmation from the system, I think that is when he decided that whatever happens, I'm going down."

"You should know Miss Swan, the private investigator I hired to help me out and gather some information is already on this. We'll get to the bottom of it."

"OK, but at least let me help by giving you all I have on Jones. Perhaps if your colleague and you take a fresh look at the data, you might see something I missed."

"How do we do that?"

"I don't save my work data on my laptop. It's a bit too dangerous for, well, a bounty hunter. I have it all encrypted on a private server. If you would borrow me your tablet for a minute?"

Regina looked conflicted for a second, but looking at her 'damsel', she found she couldn't say no. After all, it wasn't really against the rules, but it was bending them a bit. So she took a look around. No need for Gold to spy on them. One camera on upper right angle. She got up with her bag and placed the chair much closer to Miss Swan, their knees almost touching.

"Do you think this is a good angle?"

Emma took a quick look above Regina's head to double check.

"I need to sit just a few inches closer. Camera is quite high."

Emma sat a bit closer to the edge of the bed, one of her knees sliding between Regina's.

Ignore it Emma, focus on the task.

Regina pulled up her tablet, and switched it on turning it around so that Emma can take over. Miss Swan worked fast with her gadgets, so fast that Regina knew she wouldn't be able to follow what she was doing even if she wouldn't be looking at it upside down.

"You need my e-mail address?"

"It's fine, I have it memorized from your card."

Emma looked up just for a second, hoping she impressed Regina at least a bit.

Oh yes. The lawyer smiled.

So this is one more of her 'special skills' when she is finding people, she is very good with computers. It makes perfect sense for a successful bail bondsperson.

A minute later, Emma turned the tablet around and Regina placed the cover back on the screen and slid it back in her bag.

"Thank you… again."

"You are welcome Miss Swan. In any case, this is helping my part of the job. I have to figure out who the other possible suspects could be if we get in front of the jury."

Regina took a moment to examine the blonde from a close distance. Her eyes went to the bruised shoulder and then she remembered about the wound Emma suffered.

"How is your back? I hope there is no infection."

"I think the cut is healing nicely. I don't feel any stinging or pain, so I'm not alarmed."

"Do you want me to take a look?" Regina heard herself asking.

Emma stood frozen for a long moment. She swallowed slowly while looking into brown eyes and without overthinking her actions, slowly turned around and undid the top couple of buttons on her shirt, just enough to slide the loose collar down until she felt the cut could be seen.

She felt Regina's fingers pulling the collar a bit down and away as she shivered from the cold air on her skin. Or was it from the warmth she felt radiating from Regina, she wasn't sure. Regina gently removed a piece of bandage that was protecting the wound, and took a minute to really look. Just a little bit of redness, nothing big. She were adamant to deny it, but every little touch was soaked through her body, making it difficult to breathe steadily and concentrate at the task in front.

"Looks alright, the nurse did a nice job cleaning it," Regina confirmed, voice deep and quiet, breath lightly brushing her client's skin.

Emma was thankful Regina couldn't see her face at that moment. She felt herself blushing, her lips were dry and, she was sure, her pupils dilated. She felt Regina pressing on the adhesive tape that held the bandage back in its place.

"Don't worry about the bandage. I have hard time putting it back after shower, so it's a bit messy."

"No, it looks OK, don't worry."

With that, Regina pushed back with her chair leaving more space between the two. Emma felt a bit disappointed, so she decided to overcompensate by being friendly.

"So, you have a kid? Henry is a great name."

"Henry is great in many regards. He is eight years old now, and he makes me very proud every single day."

"You and your husband must be doing a good job in parenting," Emma commented hoping she is not overstepping, and at the same time thinking that the talk about Regina's family life might help to forget about her little crush, and forget about her own sad circumstances.

"Oh, it's just Henry and me. I'm not married," Regina said choosing to ignore how easily she shared private information.

Emma's heart skipped a beat. Regina could be single. Not that it matters. It doesn't matter. Why can't she listen to reason? It has to be the stupid prison making her go all sentimental and irrational.

"Do you have a picture?"

Regina took out her mobile phone and showed the wallpaper.

"He is a very cute kid. Does he look like his dad?" Emma asked before she understood half a second later she is way over the line with the question. "Fuck, I'm sorry Ms. Mills, I'm being super inappropriate."

Regina took the phone away.

"He, he is actually adopted."

All the tears Emma held back a couple of minutes ago threatened to spill again. Regina Mills, her lawyer, is an adoptive mother. In that short sentence she had a feeling Regina showed her more about what kind of a person she was and how much love she had to share than all of her previous, already half-forgotten girlfriends and flings put together. All the warning signs in her head meant nothing. She will adore this woman no matter what happens.

Apparently, realization that they are sharing too much after just a couple of professional encounters didn't stop either of them so far. So Regina had to start acting like a lawyer before she gives away any more details about her private life or blurts out something that will destroy their attorney-client relationship.

"I am meeting with my private eye this afternoon. We gave him two days to come up with some answers. Hopefully I'll call you back after that with good news from the district attorney's office and Killian Jones is already fish food."

Emma nodded. She couldn't speak, words stuck in her throat while she was kept looking with watery eyes at the elegant creature that was fighting on her side.

"We'll talk later Miss Swan."

Regina got up and left the cell. Emma could hear her talking to the police officer who came a moment later to slide the bars back into place.


	6. Malfunctions

A/N: I am so thrilled about the positive feedback I got for this story. Thank you everyone! I hope it's fun for you as it is for me :)

* * *

Regina wasn't in the habit of grabbing drinks in the middle of the day, but she felt like half of her brain just malfunctioned and she's just going through the motions since she got out of the police precinct. She needed something to shake her into calmness and going straight to work was not an option if she wants her assistant to not quit. She entered a dimly lit bar with only a couple other occupants and ordered a scotch on the rocks. She took a swig of it and then proceeded to talk herself into relaxing and calming down.

Breathe Regina, you are a grown woman and this is a complete overblown reaction.

She touched her client. Even though rationally it was normal and there was nothing to write home about in checking if the woman's wound is healing properly, all Regina could think was 'If I kiss it, would I make it better?'

So what? So, she's hot and really charming. Fine. Now deal with it like an adult.

Except here she was, asking questions about herself that other people asked themselves in their teens and college years.

Yes, of course she had eyes for other women, she was fine with it. So why hasn't she done anything before then? Why hadn't she done anything that time in college when that beautiful girl moved in the apartment opposite of hers? What was stopping her? And why did all these feelings of attraction have to hit her full force when they were the worst idea in the worst situation and with the most unlikely person whom she can't even be friends with.

Breathe, Regina.

If Miss Swan were not a client in jail, if she had just met her in a bar like this one, one day randomly chatting, what would she do? Would she take her home for one passionate night? Would she think about dating or a relationship? Or would she ignore it like she had all those previous times in life?

Were all those bad relationships she had with men doomed to fail? It cannot be the case. She had fun, right? It was pleasurable, the sex. Most of the times. It's not anyone's fault that sometimes she needed her partners to be more attentive and patient that they were willing and able to be.

Take those two times with Graham.

That was a colossal mistake. She had a couple of drinks and wanted it, and he was there, at the same party, available and willing. Second time he came to her house wanting to ask her out. She said no, but invited him upstairs. Only, it wasn't working for her. She kicked him out an hour later with apologies and no explanation. That was two years ago and there hasn't been anyone since. She had Henry and her career and she didn't need a men to make her happy or fulfilled. Incidentally, that was probably the only principle of life her mother, her sister and herself agreed on.

She finished her drink just as she spotted Gold's face on a local TV station playing in the corner. She glanced at the captions.

"Damn it!" she barked slamming her class on the counter.

"Bad day?" the bartender asked.

"And it's only downhill from here," she said with a sigh.

No more personal drama from now. Especially not where anybody can witness it. She put bills next to the empty glass and went back to the station. She has to be there for her.

"Tink?" she called her assistant on the phone.

"I'm seeing it boss."

"Change of plans. Come to the station. Tell Graham we'll meet him there. Send Kat the Scarlet case and call Ashley about this evening, I need her to be a bit flexible for the time being."

"Consider it done. I'll see you there in 30ish minutes."

* * *

"Hello dearie."

Emma glanced up from the book she was unsuccessfully trying to concentrate on. Outside of her cell Gold was standing with a very satisfactory smirk on his face and a wicked gleam in his eyes. She was instantly filled with dread. They've found him. Of course.

"What? No greetings for your favourite detective?"

Emma glared at him, not giving him any satisfaction of reply.

"Very well. Perhaps you'll show better manners when district attorney arrives. He'll be here any minute, with a bit more substantial task to do," Gold said with a chuckle. "I've come to read you your rights, since you've been now officially charged for a first degree. Oh, whom am I kidding? I just wanted to be here first to see that look upon your face."

Very funny, Emma thought. He didn't have to tell her anything else, it was clear. When he realized that further gloating will get him nowhere he turned and left.

Emma laid back on the bed with a thud.

"For fuck sake," she muttered and covered her eyes with her hand.

Since Regina left her cell, Emma couldn't help herself. _Do not mistake me for a friend_ , Regina told her on the night they've met. She was trying to focus on that. She tried to resist thinking about other scenarios, but simply couldn't. Beautiful fantasies were going through her head and she was actually hoping.

She was hoping even though hope never got her anywhere except in trouble. She was hoping that this madness would be cleared and she will get to go home tonight. She would have a shower and she would put on her best shirt and rose coloured lipstick and pick some flowers to say thank you and would go to Regina's to pick up Mal. And she would make friends with that precious kid, and one day, perhaps, she would invite his mother for dinner. In her head, Regina would say yes. In her head, Regina would let her kiss her goodnight. In her head, Regina would choose her. But no. Instead, here she is. This is, more or less, how it ends when she falls for people at the first sight – with her in government custody.

Beyond pathetic.

Officer Nolan came into the room before she had a chance to think about more appropriate insults for herself. "Hi Emma. I'm so sorry, I came to bring you to the questioning room. District attorney is here and they'll ask for a statement," he said while opening the doors.

"I know Nolan. Don't worry, Gold was here to celebrate his triumph and make sure I know what's in store. Listen, if they transfer me out of here, could you make sure my lawyer gets back all the things she brought for me?"

"Of course, don't worry about it."

He motioned for her to follow him. They walked down the corridor and into a small meeting room. Regina was there. Their eyes met and her lawyer gave her a small encouraging smile. They were seated next to each other and Emma's fingers trembled in need to connect somehow with the woman sitting next to her.

Opposite of them Spencer was going through his notes, looking like he's somehow winning in life.

"Right. Let's get this started. Miss Swan, as you might have heard, we are here today to officially learn your side of the story in regards to the death of Killian Jones whose body was recovered by the Boston police earlier today. The body is being processed for forensic evidence, but in the meantime, it seems that we already have a strong case and the judge agrees. Mr. Jones' DNA was already recovered on you Miss Swan and you were on the scene of the crime at the time of victim's death. Is there anything that you have to add to this?"

Emma was about to reply, when she felt Regina squeezing lightly her arm that was resting on her thigh underneath the table.

"Spencer, stop with this false confidence, it isn't working for you. The evidence you have so far is all circumstantial and you can stop hoping right now for any sort of confession - it's not happening," Regina said in her best Evil Queen voice.

"Very well… Let us hear then from Miss Swan. Can you tell us what exactly happened on the night in question?"

Regina gave her hand a small pat, but as she started to remove it, Emma took her fingers into a gentle hold, and a gentle current spread throughout their bodies. The lawyer saw the look of quiet determination on her client's face as she started speaking.

"I first received the info on Killian Jones from Booth and Bail on September 22nd…"

An hour later when the meeting was adjourned, long after their fingers untangled, Regina was left in the office with Emma.

"They will take you to Central Booking in a couple of hours to await the arrangement. Do you have any money on your account?"

"Yes, I have a small saving, don't worry about it," Emma said while studying her fingertips.

"Don't get into any trouble there Miss Swan. I know, this will be very stressful, but you are a survivor. So, keep your head down, pay attention to your surroundings, and try to sleep at night, rest when you can because you'll need your focus."

Emma raised her head to look at Regina and smiled. "Of course, I have to think about my poor cat. She mustn't become an orphan."

Regina tilted her head and gave a small smile. "No, we can't have that. Also their case is stupidly weak, it will be over before you know it."

"I hope so Regina."

As the guards escorted Emma out, Regina remained seated for another minute feeling slightly dazed. In the cold empty room, she could hear her heart beating faster. Emma said her name and Regina really liked the sound of it.

Once ready to deal with the rest of the world she picked up Graham and Tink who waited for her outside the meeting room. "Guys, let's go to the diner across the street. If it's quiet, it's better to talk there. These walls have ears," Regina said staring daggers at the back of officer Leroy.

Soon they were comfortably seated in a booth of a classical all-American diner with hot drinks and french fries for Tink and Graham. Regina gave a sign for her detective to start.

"This is Neal Cassidy," said Graham showing the file. "I already updated Tink on him. He is in prison in Florida and up for parole in about a year. According to my sources, he is behaving. They confirm that he had a rough couple of years in 2008 and 2009 but after that it seems he focused on getting out. Interesting thing is that official complaints on him are non-existent for the whole time he is there. That is virtually impossible for a normal person, no less an inmate living with others in close confinement. Which leads me to believe he has someone protecting him. Who? I don't know. He doesn't seem to have any VIP connections from his previous thief career, no family, no wife, no significant correspondence during his time in prison even except some pen-pal girlfriends. My opinion? You should go and talk to him if you have a chance. It's probable he might give you something about Emma if you ask nicely, and I think our goal is not to be surprised."

"You are quite right, Graham." Regina said looking at Cassidy's picture, feeling not particularity impressed. On the grand scale of handsomeness, this guy didn't reach middle marks.

"What do you have on relationship between Gold and Emma?"

"Nothing yet. I've been cross-checking Emma's old cases with Gold's but nothing comes up. So, I tried to talk to his former partner and now retired officer Leopold King. He wouldn't talk about Gold at all, in fact he sounded quite panicked when I mentioned who I want to talk about. I tried a little intimidation but nothing worked."

"If they have some sort of dirty cop history together, it's unlikely he would spill anything," said Regina.

"What about his personal life? Does he have a best friend, a husband or a wife we could ask?" Tink asked.

"Yes, he is married to a beautiful, much younger, highly educated woman," said Graham with a sigh.

"Oooh Graham, you like Mrs. Gold?" Tink said with a wink.

"Look at her. Who wouldn't?" Graham replied showing on his tablet a picture of a pretty brunette in a red winter coat reading a book on a park bench. "Unfortunately, Belle French is also proving to be difficult to reach. She doesn't leave the house much, she is unemployed and doesn't keep in touch with friends on social media. This picture is from Twitter account on which she mostly re-tweets news such as Nobel literature prize, book reviews from The New Yorker and major publishing announcements."

"Perhaps I should try and talk to my mother. They are friends, but of a political kind so it was never my impression she would know something from his personal life."

"Well, perhaps is worth trying," Graham confirmed.

"OK, thank you. We'll see about this angle. Now, the most important part. Have you checked the other possible suspects who have a history of bad blood with Jones?"

"Yes, and your client is right Regina. That is one long list. I have a brief for you on, by my opinion, top three candidates."

He pulled a folder on his tablet, and started going through profiles.

"From the business side, there is angry chief of operations that Jones was working for in most of his transactions, her organisation is very notorious and is under a close watch by the FBI who is trying to catch her for years. She goes by Cruella Deville."

"Like a cartoon character?" Tink said munching on her fries.

"Yeah. Apparently they share the love for furs and dead animals… and dead humans. She is very angry because when Hook got caught it seriously damaged her operation. And there are rumors he might have talked to the FBI. As much as it pains me to say, if this guy was smart at all – he wouldn't do that. This lady is very dangerous. On the other hand, if she heard the same rumors as I did, it doesn't really matter what he did or did not do."

"Do we have evidence that connects them?" Regina asked.

"Oh yes, there is plenty of material. Functions they've attended, meetings, she hired his defense attorney, FBI has details. It shouldn't be a problem, especially if FBI gets moving on their case and start arresting."

Graham browsed for a couple of seconds until he found the second face.

"And that brings us to this handsome man. He is known as Jefferson and he is the head of the rival crime group. He has plenty of reasons to wish Jones dead, more precisely around 5 million dollars which is the rumored market share of all Hook operations. You can imagine he got very irritated when it was known that Jones came back from custody. Both of them are small fishes – the FBI is after the big bosses which is the only reason these characters were still swimming."

"This is good Graham," Tink said when it was apparent by his hopeful smile that poor Graham wanted some praise.

"Lastly, we have another lady on our list. Meet Milah," Graham said while showing a blurry picture of a brunette woman.

"The picture's not the best, I know, but here are also some nice courtroom sketches of her. She is the top candidate out of a long list of ex-girlfriends that could still hold a grudge strong enough and have means to organize something like contracting a murder and removing an arm as a memento. I got her name from Emma's files."

"What does she do?" Regina asked.

"She was a regular housewife before she met him. She had a son and a husband. She met Jones in 2011 and a year after, both her son and her husband died in a road accident that was highly suspicious. The kid was not supposed to be in the car, but his dad decided to take him to a baseball game. My guess is that Hook wanted to make her a widow and made a mistake. If she shares my doubt, she has a prime reason for revenge."

"Yes she has," Regina said coldly. When Graham and Tink looked at her, she elaborated in the same chilly and convincing manner, "If someone took Henry like that, I wouldn't stop. I would destroy their happiness and killed them all, even if it were the last thing I ever do."

Graham cleaned his throat, feeling a bit uncomfortable. "Yes, well, she could be sharing that sentiment. We know she was up to no good, because she basically threatened to kill him on the witness stand during his trial. She was the big part of the case, because she stayed in a relationship with him to collect evidence and put him in jail, so I can imagine she was not happy when he got out on bail. During her time with him she could have definitely gotten the necessary know-how to delete him from existence, like how to hire some hit-men."

"Can you find her for me?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Regina looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and both Graham and Tink had the decency to blush bright red. She pushed the fries towards them with, "Eat your dinner kids," and raised her tablet to double check on the Twitter account of Belle French.

It made no sense. She saw Gold with her mother more times than she did with this woman. Does he keep his little wife in the basement when she misbehaves? She was active yesterday, so at least we know she's alive. Regina will just have to think of something to make Belle talk to her. Little did he she know, Belle wanted to talk to her too.


	7. Preparations

N/A: Thank you everyone who reviewed and helped with some info in this story. Lots of love! Here's a shorter chapter, I'll hurry up with next one.

* * *

After Henry's sitter went home that evening, Regina kissed her little prince good-night and marched into her study armed with a pot of coffee, cookies and determination. Boys wanted war, boys will get it. That meant maximum preparation and meticulous execution, which translated into another late night, this time with Mal sitting in the corner of her spacious desk just in the reach for occasional relaxation petting.

She reviewed the details of the case from all possible angles, going through police and forensic reports and Emma's statement, trying to find any possible problems, discrepancies or weaknesses. One of her big concerns that still remained is the uncertainty about the extent of the buddy-buddy relationship between her main opponents, Spencer and Gold, perhaps even Glass, and whether it is loyalty, an old debt or nothing at all that binds them.

Spencer is not a complete idiot, he was mostly worthy of her time in previous cases they both worked on, so his insistence on charging Miss Swan was a bit baffling. He must know he has no case really, so why waste time on the intimidation tactic unless he is just returning a favour and simple wants to get this thing out of his agenda as soon as possible.

Still, if Miss Swan accidentally ended up with some easy-to-intimidate state-appointed newbie, well, it was a scary thought Regina didn't want to dwell on.

Mal jumped down the table to place herself on a cushy chair, just as she received an email from one of her expert witnesses explaining the finer points of her opinion on the availability and function of Miss Swan's website she was very pleased with.

Another victory of the evening was that she managed to pull some strings to secure a better contact with the FBI so she can check what her two new favourite criminals are up to. Deville and Jefferson are now important; they need to stay alive and unharmed a bit longer, get themselves in further trouble and, if the planets align properly for Regina and Emma, end up in jail sooner than later.

It was around two o'clock when her iPad alerted Regina of a new Tweet sent by Belle French she was now following. It was a retweet of J.K. Rowling's latest endorsement of Hillary Clinton.

Good girl, and keeps late hours. Fantastic.

Thinking about it for a second, Regina determines that there is no time like now time for a little risk, and sends a direct message, very direct in its content.

 _EQ_law: Hi, we haven't met before, but I would like to talk to you. Concerns my client Emma Swan and your husband. Regina Mills._

After 20 seconds of staring at her inbox, she decided to continue with work and hope for the best. Ten minutes later, she started closing down her files when a direct message alert popped back.

 _BelleBooks: I'm sorry, I can't help you._

 _EQ_law: Can't or won't? Please, my client is having a difficult time and doesn't even understand why._

After a second of though, she gives it an extra punch.

 _EQ_law: And you should know I don't say 'please' very often._

 _BelleBooks: I'll think about it. Don't message me again._

She will totally help us, Regina concluded with a confident smile. Excellent. A day will end on a positive note after all. Except, technically, the day ended three hours ago, and she is now being ridiculous. Blaming tiredness for her muddled thoughts she went to bed hoping for a quick and deep sleep that won't be interrupted with visions of lace clad pale skin and silky blonde hair.

* * *

Next morning Regina swooped into her office with a phone glued to her ear, gesticulating to Tink to pass her pen and paper. "Yes? Yes, I got it… Right. Thank you agent, it was a pleasure. _Of course_ no one will ever know," she said with unnaturally high pitched voice.

She scribbled something quickly on a piece of paper and hung up the phone.

"What is that?"

"I might have procured something very useful from one of my old college connections."

"Connections? As in 'college friends'?" Tink asked tilting her head and not-so-subtly judging.

"Connections. This is the address of the office of the one they call Jefferson," Regina said waving the piece of paper, walked to her desk and leaned on the side of it.

"Office? Does he have working hours too? Pretty classy for a drug dealer."

"He is technically a boss to other dealers."

"Dare I ask how is that you got something like that?"

"He is under surveillance," Regina just shrugged her shoulders, "so I am sure half of the FBI knows how to reach him. Perhaps they are even trying to win him over, who knows what their tactic is."

"Are you planning to talk to him?"

"Of course."

Tink just frowned, "Be careful."

"Arraignment hearing starts at 11. I'll deal with this later. Anything urgent that needs my attention?" Regina said changing the topic.

"She who must not be named called again. I told her you are working from an undisclosed location. One of these days she'll come here and finish me off."

As was customary, Regina just ignored with a barely noticeable eye roll, so Tink just continued, "There were two calls about possible legal representation. I gave Kat's number to one of them, as it showed some promise. I assumed you don't want anything new before next week."

"Very good. Let's see how today goes, and we'll see about accepting anything next week, although I have to say, I'm not sure I'll have time."

Tink took a moment to look at her. She badly wanted to probe Regina about her commitment to this case, as it seemed to run a bit deeper than business as usual. For heaven's sake, Regina even takes care of her client's pet, and even by normal people friendship standards, that's significant. However, she was smart enough not to do anything reckless like pushing her nose into her boss's private affairs… again.

Once, at the beginning of her working in the office, she made a mistake of intervening in Regina's personal life by arraigning an 'accidental meeting' between her beautiful new boss and one of her old friends, nice guy, a widow and a parent. Tink didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Except, Regina didn't like him, apparently he pushed all the wrong buttons, smelled like forest and couldn't hold his end of a conversation so when she found out that their chance encounter wasn't by chance at all, she almost fired the New Zealander. It was very cold in the office for a month afterwards.

Regina also dodged every attempt for a more personal conversation, and besides her intolerance towards her mother, love for her son and amicability toward Kat (her rare friend Regina mostly refused to acknowledge as such) Tink didn't know much about her boss's relationships at all. But there was something with this Swan case that moved the reserved woman, and even though Tink might never know the details, she was wise to notice its importance.

"Do you want me to book you anywhere for lunch?"

Regina was already viciously typing on her computer.

"No, I'll grab something on my way," Regina said before a thought popped into her mind. She could take Miss Swan for lunch if her bail gets approved… but that was uncertain. If not, perhaps she could take a lunch to Miss Swan instead. "Actually, Tink, I might call you if you don't mind popping down to the courthouse."

"It's not a problem at all Regina."


	8. Blame

An hour later Regina strode into the courtroom, zeroed in on bored looking district attorney Spencer whom she then approach with a smirk on her face.

"Albert dear, I have decided that I don't wish to see you completely embarrass yourself with that first-degree nonsense Gold is using to intimidate my client."

"Oh really Regina? You want to show me the error of my ways?" Spencer asked with a not particularly impressed tone of voice, covering the open files on his desk with newspapers. Paranoid idiot.

"Are they your ways? Or someone else's?"

He paused and looked at her. "Careful there. What are you implying?"

"I'm saying that you must know you have no case at all. Particularly, even less if you are going with these futile charges. So why waste our time?" Regina asked towering over older man.

"Last time I've checked I don't answer to you Ms. Mills."

"No, you answer to the People."

After a pregnant pause, Regina just shrugged. "Fine. Go ahead then, try to prove premeditation without a motive, I'll have a lot of fun watching you squirm."

She did enough damage. As she turned around to leave her bag on the desk, Emma came in escorted by a guard, dressed in a simple shirt and a blazer with her hair in a neat bun.

Regina's heart skipped a beat, which, she understood, is the new normal whenever she sees the blonde. "Good day Miss Swan. How are you feeling?"

Emma nodded and quietly replied, "Hi Ms. Mills. OK I guess… I just want to get this part over with."

Regina leaned closer to her. "Don't worry, in long-term we have this. For today, first we'll get the message through to the judge and the prosecution we will not be giving them any satisfaction. If you ask me, the case should go down the drain immediately, but we'll see what Glass is in the mood to do."

Emma was looking at her, it seemed to Regina she was contemplating something. She bit her lower lip, in what wasn't intended to be, but surely was, a very alluring little gesture.

"Do you think we could talk for a minute or two today?"

"Of course. I've actually arranged a meeting time for us after this is over."

Emma looked at her visibly relieved. "Excellent. There is something important that we need to talk through." She turned around looking at the courtroom. "There are more people here today… Is this case going to get a lot of press? I mean… I'm hardly a famous person and Jones was just a criminal scumbag."

Regina glanced around her. Indeed, there were a couple of obvious looking journalist, August was there and she spotted Mary Blanchard and David Nolan with some other police officers. "It's difficult to say. I think it will be interesting. I mean, we have a beautiful woman charged, explosions, drugs and bad boys. But normally, the fun factor runs its course pretty fast."

It took Regina a second to realise she just called Emma beautiful to her face. She took a deep breath and after seeing Miss Swan slightly blush for a second, decided the blunder was very worth it. Well, it's also a true statement, she can't help it.

"All rise! Honorable Judge Sidney Glass presiding," the bailiff announced as the familiar man walked into the room.

"You may be seated."

Judge looked around the courtroom, raising his eyebrows at familiar faces.

"Looks like we're all back. And the stakes are much higher this time too. Mr. Spencer, what do we have here now?" Glass asked opening the file in front of him. He loudly whistled as Spencer started explaining.

"Prosecution is bringing up the murder charges after the discovery of the victim's body. We have a set of evidence linking Miss Emma Swan to the scene of the crime. We have evidence she got into a fight with Mr. Jones, her DNA was recovered from the victim's body and from the scene, and we believe she also took his life, set the boat on fire and then swam ashore. It was carefully planned, with Miss Swan setting up a trap for Mr. Jones."

"Objection your honor, Mr. Spencer's conclusions are truly fantastical."

"Yes, Albert, let's leave those to the jury," Glass said before looking back into the file in front of him. He exhaled audibly before looking back at Spencer. "I really hope the district attorney's office has something more on this case then what I'm seeing here."

"No they don't!" Regina interjected quickly followed by some snickering sound from the audience.

"Spencer, I'll let this fly for now. But...", Gold continued before Regina got another word out, "if you don't come up with something stronger before trial starts, I'll suggest you downgrade your charges before we face the jury. As it stands now, the case it's on the verge of dismissal."

"I understand your honour."

Glass then turned to Emma. "Miss Emma Swan, you the defendant, are here formally advised of the charges against you and I ask you to plea to these charges. So, in the matter of a murder in the first degree, how do you plea?"

Emma's voice was clear and strong as she answered with conviction. "Not guilty."

"Very well. Now, about the bail?"

Spencer spoke next, "We ask that the defendant be denied bail, as she is a high flight risk, as you might remember."

Regina couldn't have it. "Your honour, the only reason Miss Swan is in custody now, as you must be aware, is because of complete bogus prostitution charges against her brought by the prosecution even though it was quite clear then, as it is now, that there is no case here. After Mr. Spencer received our evidence of Miss Swan's legal employment, together with the expert evidence that the web site, on which they were basing their accusations on, was indeed not a public site except in rare occasions when it served as a bait for criminals, prosecution changed the tune. They are now using the same website as evidence for premeditation, even though the only thing it shows is Miss Swan's plan to meet with Mr. Jones. The prosecution doesn't have a motive. Let me repeat that - the prosecution doesn't have a motive, all the evidence is circumstantial, and this entire case is likely to be thrown out by you on our first day here," Regina said pointing at Spencer keeping her tone strong and measured. "There is no ground to put Miss Swan though any more jail time."

Spencer cut in: "Your honour, this is irrelevant. I am not going to sit here and listen to Ms. Mills attempting to prophesize the results of upcoming trial sessions. What we discussed last time, still stands. Emma Swan has a history of disappearing and reappearing in new locations with new jobs and new families, but no permanent connections to the community. Considering the seriousness of the crime she is charged with, she simply cannot be allowed to disappear again."

"I agree with you Mr. Spencer," came from the bench.

Regina rolled her eyes and Emma just lowered her head looking at her fingers.

After the end of the hearing, the courtroom was cleared and Emma waited to be escorted to the meeting room.

"Miss Swan, I'm ordering us some food from Granny's diner. What would you like?" Regina asked while passing her tablet to Emma which had the listed menu.

"Whooaa, I love that place. Are you sure?"

"Yes, of course. It's not your fault it's lunch time soon. I have to eat."

Emma's eyes sparkled as she ordered a cheeseburger, salad and a coke.

"No dessert? If you don't decide I'm getting us some cheesecake."

"That sounds wonderful Ms. Mills"

Regina picked up her phone and sent a message to Tink with the details of the order, before following Emma and the guard to a court meeting room. It wasn't a luxurious room, but it had a sofa, a table and two chairs, some empty shelves next to a cheap looking print of a forest on the wall and a bright big window secured on the outside by slim metal bars. The lawyer chose a chair and the client chose the window.

"Look at that, almost a nice view," Emma said in a voice that was supposed to sound bright and cheery but was too artificially high-pitched. Regina looked at her and bit her tongue. Yes, yes it was a nice view. Of Emma, standing in the sunshine, the bars as shadows spilling over her body.

"I don't have enough money to pay your fees Regina," she said not moving.

"Miss Swan, I told you before…"

"No, Regina. Please. I see you, you know. You walk, talk and look like a very successful person, one that doesn't take anyone's bullshit and I… I don't want to be anyone's charity case." Especially yours, Emma thought. It's bad enough she is just an orphan without any social standing. She wanted the woman to see her as an equal, and if they don't work out some sort of an arrangement, she will never be.

"Miss Swan, I don't know what exactly you're thinking, but you can't look at this in that way. I took your case because I dislike bullies, which is what Gold is, I took it because I liked you when I first saw you, and because it's an interesting affair that made me curious and not bored out of my mind," Regina sternly said. "I can certainly afford that once in awhile I commit to something just for my own reasons, without having to explain it to my accountant or my colleagues, or my clients. Quite frankly, you should be grateful and not try to antagonise me with this talk. I mean what is your plan? To have someone state provides for you?"

Emma turned to look at the her lawyer slightly frustrated. "I don't know, but if you want to be my lawyer, I want to be able to pay you for the hours you are investing."

"I am a criminal defense attorney. Sometimes I get clients who cannot pay. It's hardly news in my line of work, and I don't understand why you just can't accept that I'm not asking for anything in return," Regina said her voice raising slightly at the end of the sentence. Silent minute passed in reflection for both women.

"Are you very rich ?"

"I am quite comfortable, yes. Enough so that I don't need to follow my mother's idea about life, that I can say no to corporate law, and just do what I like, including representing you."

"Well, if it means something, I can't picture you doing something boring like corporate merges."

"Thank you Miss Swan." Regina said, her annoyance already diminishing.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I am very grateful for your effort. Perhaps… once this is all done, we could go out for dinner? I mean, as a thank you. It would be the least I can do." Emma said fidgeting just slightly.

"Of course. That is a lovely idea."

Emma smiled. "And I owe your kid some serious reparations for taking care of my cat."

"Oh, don't worry. He would pay you to do it. He adores her. But if you are really interested, he is a Star Wars fan. There's a new film coming up this winter and according to my plans you will be very free to accompany us."

That was a first in a long time that Emma felt she had a meaningful plan with people she sort of cared about. It was ridiculous, she hasn't even met young Henry and she was delighted to have been included in the important event. Words were stuck in her mouth, so she leaned her head in what was almost a very delicate bow.

"Come and sit down Miss Swan, you should enjoy the comforts of the courthouse while you can."

"I'm afraid the sofa might spoil me."

Regina laughed, "Oh, you don't strike me as a person who can get easily spoiled by anything."

Emma walked around the sofa and, with a goofy smile on her face, plopped down resting her legs on the armrest. "You are right. This definitely cannot spoil me. They were saving money when they bought this thing."

Regina laughed back. "Mmm, agreed."

Emma spent a few seconds more lying, but then got herself up into a seating position, folding her legs underneath her body. Looking at her, Regina felt that overwhelming need to know the blonde woman better, to get closer to her and understand her world. Her new normal. Weighing the words, she settled for her usual approach.

"Please, I hope you don't mind me asking, but I was in your apartment and, while it's a very cute place, I couldn't help noticing it was a bit bare. Have you lived there for long?"

Regina liked to use pleasantries, but those never fooled anyone and Emma found it unusually endearing.

"Abouuut… two years."

"That's not that long."

"It seems like ages to me."

"It is, however, long enough to give your interior a more personal touch."

"Aaah… you mean like mementos and pictures of loved ones?"

"For example."

"Yeah… I don't… see, I am very bad at maintaining personal relationships."

"How come? You seem like a perfectly reasonable young woman. You have an active job that surely takes you places. You must meet a lot of people."

"Oh I meet a lot of people, but not the kind you want to be friends with," Emma answered with wrinkled eyebrows. Thinking about her life she looked at the perfectly beautiful face of the woman sitting next to her. "I have two friends from childhood, none of them live in the city now. One left the state to search for her family and never came back, the other is currently out of the country taking care of her sick parents in Iceland. I don't think they've heard what's going on."

"Why don't you call them?"

"And what would that achieve except them worrying about me? Absolutely nothing."

"You should call at least one of them."

"Normally I keep in touch through emails or Skype every couple of months, but I'm busy and so are they. And then there's time difference."

"That just sounds like you're making up excuses."

"Maybe I am", said Emma shrugging her shoulders. "Maybe it's just easier that way. You know, when I was little I was constantly surrounded by too many people, too many other kids, foster parents that kept rotating, social services, I was constantly changing houses and sharing a room… and all I wanted was for someone to adopt me, to have my own family. And when that didn't happen, I guess I just wanted to be left alone. So that is what I'm doing currently," Emma said adding a deprecating comment, "Naturally, with my luck, I'm rewarded for my efforts by ending up behind the bars... twice."

"I can actually say I understand you better than you might think." Regina said. "Well, except for being in state custody."

Emma eyed her curiously. "You also wanted to be left alone?"

"Yes, well if you knew my mother, you would understand. She was a bit overbearing and controlling to the point of, well, abusiveness." Regina covered her face with her hands and after some seconds ticked by, surprisingly to Emma, she giggled a little bit. "I can't believe I'm telling you this. Miss Swan, you have to excuse me."

"No, Regina, please," Emma leaned over and covered Regina's hand with her own. "I want to know more about you. And believe me, nothing you could say would ever make me think less of you."

Regina felt the honesty of those words but she couldn't bring herself to look at Emma, she was too focused on their hands, acutely aware of every square inch they connected. She felt Emma's pointer finger twitch, as the younger woman suddenly became aware of the touch.

"Are these unlikely similarities between the two of us to blame for this?" Regina asked.

Emma felt the unbearable heaviness descend into the lowest ends of her stomach, her mouth felt dry as she struggled to concentrate.

"Blame for what?"

"That we keep forgetting I'm your lawyer and you're my client standing for a murder trial?"

Emma couldn't answer that, wouldn't… She kept looking at Regina silently begging her to look at her, to see in her eyes what Emma couldn't say out loud.

I think you are amazing, I think you are beautiful, I want you to wrap me in your arms and breathe into my neck, I think I could be falling for you.

But Regina never looked up. Instead, she took her hands away to clear her head. Emma touching her was not good for her... sentences.

After some moments of silence, Regina cleared her throat and took her tablet out to explain to Emma all the details she gathered, expert testimony about the website, and the likely road-map of the upcoming jury selection. Trying to concentrate at work in front of them, Emma felt very relieved when twenty or so minutes later they were interrupted by the knock on the door, and the guard let a bubbly blonde woman into the room.

"Oh, Tink, wonderful, we were getting hungry," Regina said motioning to her to put the food on the table where she left space.

"Miss Swan, this is my assistant, Telulah Bell."

"Pleased to officially meet you... finally. Call me Tink, my parents had a lot of imagination," she unnecessarily explained, walking towards them with a smile and an outstretched hand ready to shake Emma's.

"Pleased to meet you too. Thank you for helping with the case, Tink," said Emma.

"You're welcome. Well, also, otherwise Regina would fire me," she jokingly said with a wink towards both women. "I'll leave you to your lunch."

She watched the duo for a second before exiting the room, with a fleeting thought about prettiness, loneliness and chemistry. She'll think about her impressions on the defendant later, away from Regina's piercing eyes.

Emma and Regina ate in silence, one enjoying her hamburger, other her salad. But then Emma got this strong feeling, like every minute of not communicating with the beautiful lawyer is a minute of her life wasted. "She is a ray of sunshine, isn't she?"

"Tink? Yes. Her style is… resistant toward my more… grouchy disposition," said Regina choosing her words. "I had some assistants that didn't last a day. Then she came and I, of course, fired her after two days, but she paid no attention to that, and kept coming back."

Emma tried to envision the scene and burst out laughing. "Oh my god, I can totally imagine your face when she decided to just ignore being fired."

Regina joined in with laughter. "Yes, it was pretty funny. And she refused to answer to Miss Bell. You can imagine my disbelief."

"Well, I'm relieved that you are in fact capable of calling people by their names. So, I stand a chance of being called Emma one of these days?"

"Yes… Emma. You stand a small chance after the case is wrapped up."

Oh, Emma wished she didn't just ask that, because the way Regina said her name made it sound so beautiful, deep and hot and it was sending her imagination into overdrive. How would it sound against her skin? Emma shivered at the thought. She looked up at Regina and decided to test whether it works mutually.

"I'm looking forward to it... Regina."

Emma couldn't be sure, perhaps it was her wishful thinking that got her to think Regina's pupils dilated slightly and that her mouth opened a bit or that the tendons in her neck moved like harp strings. They were sitting close to each other, so surely, her eyes were not deceiving her? Is this tension just in her head? Is she making up the entire thing, potentially jeopardizing her possible future friendship with this incredible woman? So many questions. Perhaps she could at least get one answer today.

"You do realise that in a span of a day you called me beautiful and told me you like me?"

Regina couldn't hide the surprise and a little shock on her face at Emma's direct approach.

"I did?... Hmmm."

Fuck it. She's an adult, she should own it.

"Well… I guess I did."

"Careful, you are making my head spin," Emma replied with a sly happy smile on her lips.

Regina could hear herself slowly exhaling, pleasant tingles spreading low in her abdomen, convinced that she is projecting her attraction for Emma with all the subtlety of a war rig. A step back needed to be taken, but not before she gets her own one vital piece of information.

"Is that normal for you? That a woman can make your head spin?"

"Quite."

Emma met Regina's stare and held it, no matter how painful standing still just became, her arms aching to hold the other woman, fingers to caress her cheek. Her eyebrow went up in a silent challenge to her lawyer, as if to say, I know now, and so do you.

But knowing isn't same as doing, and their professional relationship needed to be maintained. So Regina managed a small smile, picked her tablet back up from the edge of the desk and pronounced in an even, controlled tone, "Let's get back to work Miss Swan."


	9. Criminal

The quiet confidence Emma radiated that hour in Regina's proximity evaporated quickly after the blonde was once again left alone, confined to four walls, on a strange bed, and with nothing but her fantasies to lift up her spirits. If she ever needed a drink and some distracting conversations - it was now. But this was not the place to suddenly start seeking friendly ears and, thinking a bit more about it, she wasn't sure what would she say to this imaginary friend.

Hi, friend, I've fallen for my unattainable hot lawyer, I've told her I'm into women, and I have this idea that she could possibly like me back?

LOL. Good luck Emma, good luck with that.

But there was a moment, damn it! She hasn't lost her damn mind that much to have completely made up the way Regina was looking back at her. She has been in this bloody nightmare for barely a week, which is surely not enough time to develop the level of obsession that would completely obscure the truth. Alternative is that she, Emma, is being inappropriate towards her possibly straight lawyer.

No, no… Regina is fuelling it, she has to be.

Emma fell back on the bed squeezing her eyes shut and praying for her time to pass as quickly as possible. Too many minutes in here by herself led to too many hopes and too many dreams and too many new ways her heart could get crushed in the aftermath.

* * *

Regina left the meeting room in a haze. Her client is gay. Emma is gay… or bi, or whatever, and since that has now been officially confirmed, and cannot be denied or ignored, Regina felt like somehow the rug got pulled out from under her and she was falling face first into lust with the beautiful woman. The entire thing with Emma being her client and being a woman, the short time in which these… feelings developed, the sudden uncharacteristic fear she felt for leaving her in jail all alone and most of all, the difficulty of not touching her when she is near, all of it almost paralysed the lawyer. How she managed to pull through to the end of the meeting, Regina had no clue. She needed to talk to someone about all this. Her sister? She took a moment to stop in the corridor, leaned on the wall, took a deep breath and rolled her eyes at herself.

Obviously not, because reasons. Perhaps she can call Archie, at least he would be obliged not to mention it again ever and is less likely to use anything she says against her. She'll think about it later.

Going back to the task at hand, which is saving Emma Swan's perfect derrière. She has to check what those imbeciles did during their search and destroy mission of Emma's home so that she doesn't come back from jail into chaos and mess. Nolan told her he would make sure the place stays locked after the search and that he'll try to minimize the damage. She took a taxi in front of the courthouse and went to Emma's address.

Well, there is only so much Nolan could've done, she thought after stepping into formerly cosy apartment, slowly scanning the room. There were things everywhere, the books were out of the shelf, the sofa was a mess, the kitchen cabinets were open and things were out on the counter. She turned towards the bedroom doors, almost stepping on a piece of broken cup. There, she could see Emma's clothes on the floor and all over the bed. Without thinking too much, Regina took of her coat of and placed it on the counter with her bag, found some hangers and slowly started to put the items back to their most probable place, as best as she could. She folded the shirts back into a neat pile, closed the open drawers, put the cap back on the perfume bottle and arranged a delicate silver necklace back into rather empty jewelry box. It was a very pretty thing, she could easily imagine it hanging around Emma's elegant neck. Perhaps she gets to see it one day. Kitchen took a bit more effort but it wasn't big so her progress was fast. She found a small broom and a dustpan to clean up the shattered porcelain and soon the floor was fine too. She left the living room for last and before taking up the task of sorting the few books and DVDs, she sat on the edge of the sofa for a minute. Funny, she didn't want to make herself more comfortable. It felt that if she laid down for a bit, she would somehow betray Emma's right to be her proper host one day.

Then she spotted a small shoe box next to where Emma's laptop used to be before police confiscated it. She peeked inside. There were several postcards and some pictures. She took one from the top. A little girl, very obviously Emma, perhaps six or seven years old - slightly younger than her Henry is now, long blond braid down her right shoulder, in a oversized yellow summer dress and with a smile on her face. She was an adorable child. How was it possible no one adopted this precious girl?

Lightly massaging her lower back she thought about how unfair this whole case was. No, no… it could be even more unfair very easily, but that is why the system is in place - to make sure Emma gets a proper defence, to make sure that for every Gold there is a Nolan, and for every little misogynistic gang of bros there is an Evil Queen to try to set it straight.

With a sigh and a tilt of her head, Regina put the picture back in it's place, carefully shutting the box and arranging the shelves back to a proper state. She thought about the time she adopted Henry. She was so scared she will never make it and that no one will ever give her, a single woman, a child for adoption. After all, she was not seen as the motherly type even within her stupid family. But she managed. Mostly due to large amount of money she inherited from her father that was willing to put into the adoption process, but also because she very deeply felt that she had a lot of love to give and she actually believed her plan will come true. The decision took everyone else in her life by surprise, but she persisted and she got her little prince and she never regretted it since, loving him with the first glance she ever laid on him.

That happens to her it seems; emotions come quickly, whether it's instant dislike that is afterwards hard to change, or instant love that burns deep and sure and is all consuming.

Well, at least she hasn't lost her flair for the dramatic.

She put the last book back and turned to straighten the cushions and a blanket. The place looked much better now. Good. Her little prince and a big fluffy cat were waiting for her.

* * *

When Saturday finally arrived in what felt like one of the longest weeks ever, Regina and Henry took their sweet time strolling to Granny's dinner for breakfast, discussing Henry's homework and events from his literary club. Apparently the teacher disliked Henry's colourful description of Hansel and Gretel murdering a witch, which Regina thought was quite imaginative. Perhaps less Tim Burton for Henry for a while.

They were a bit more subdued than usual, couple of more hours of sleep desired by both, so the compromise over their breakfast order was reached easily. Regina saw it as a dangerous thing so she ordered an extra-large cup of black coffee.

"So mom, how is Emma?"

"What?"

"You should say 'excuse me' or 'I beg your pardon' as manners are important," Henry informed her in a way that could be pompous coming from someone else's child, but he was just too adorable.

"Well, she is fine. It's not good or right what she is going through but she is being very brave."

"Did you tell her how we couldn't find Mal under my bed covers?"

"Not yet, but I'll be sure to mention it next time I see her."

"Does Emma have a boyfriend or a girlfriend?"

Regina lowered the coffee, her eyebrows shooting high on her forehead. Her eight year old son was munching on his pancake without skipping a beat.

"Umm… not that I know of."

"That's too bad."

"Why?" Regina asked with a slight pang, suddenly afraid that this is Henry's delicate way of implying families should come with two parents, something she was always concerned about, especially considering her busy schedule and how often she leaves him with his babysitter. "I don't have a… a boyfriend or a girlfriend, and it's working out. I hope."

"Yes mom of course, but you got me," Henry said chewing and smiling, while Regina let out a breath of relief. After a moment of thought she decided to just ask him.

"Henry, would it bother you?" He looked up from his hot chocolate. "Would it bother you if I had a... a boyfriend… or a girlfriend?"

"Nope mom. As long as you'll still want me too," he said eyes wide and face covered in chocolate and cream.

"Oh Henry, you don't have to worry about that. That will never change," she said, grabbed the napkin and started wiping his face clean. She tickled his nose and they both laughed their way through the rest of the breakfast.

After dropping Henry off to his swimming class, Regina took a taxi down to the harbour. She had two hours before she had to pick him up, and she planned to put them to good use. Her intel took her to a location that 10 hours later could be described as faintly lit murder alley, but the tiny street failed to look very menacing in the morning light. After paying her taxi driver a little extra to stay put and wait for her, Regina did what she always does; she confidently walked right up to the hard metal door and rang the bell with zero hesitation. After a minute of nothing, she rang again. Another minute of waiting.

…

…

"Hello? Is anyone here?" she loudly asked.

What kind of a drug dealing operation is this guy running if nobody is taking care of the business? She was already rethinking her strategy when the doors quietly opened to reveal a very worn out face of a man she assumed was Jefferson.

"Lady, whatever it is that you are buying, I ain't selling."

He wanted to close the door on her but Regina had her foot already in as she pushed the door back at the man. She took in his ashen cheeks, purple bags under his eyes, messy hair, dishevelled clothes and bloody knuckles in front of her face of the hand that was holding the door.

"I'm not here to buy anything from you."

"Reason more to fuck off from my doorstep."

"Look…"

"You look lady. You obviously know who I am and what I do, otherwise you wouldn't be here. So, I don't need to spell out a warning, but if you.."

"Actually, Mr. Jefferson, I am here to warn you."

"Too late lady, I already have plenty of warnings, threats and blackmails. They ain't working on me anymore."

She really looked at him this time, beyond bloodshot eyes and trembling lips, and she saw a man with not much to lose. There was a desperation in him, brought about by drugs or by circumstances, she wasn't quite sure. She put an effort into softening her voice and relaxing her features.

"You don't look too good Mr. Jefferson. How big is the trouble you're in?"

He said nothing, but she noticed that his grip on the door loosened just slightly.

"Does it have anything to do with murder of Killian Jones?"

At this he tried to slam the door again on her, so Regina put all her effort into blocking him, her foot and her shoulder hurting from the pressure. If he weren't so out of his mind, he would probably manage it, but his strength was diminishing in noticeable speed, so she only needed to be patient a couple of more minutes.

"Mr. Jefferson, are you on drugs?"

He looked at her like she is the one completely crazy.

"Lady, you are looking at the dead men. Drugs are pretty much the only thing I have left."

"Talk to me then. Tell me what is happening. Tell me what you know about Jones. It's important."

"Important how?"

Regina didn't come here with a plan of telling Jefferson - a drug-dealing crime boss - that she was Emma's lawyer. She reasonably assumed it would be highly unlikely that this criminal would help her out and potentially incriminate himself. But this was not a behaviour of a crime boss. He was behaving like one of his victims. A drug addict on death bed.

"I'm a lawyer. My client is being prosecuted for that crime. I'm here to ask you what you know. Please Mr. Jefferson, it's important…," she pleaded, " _She_ is important."

She saw in his eyes the moment he made a decision to help her. He bowed his head and opened the door as if she was some sort of a royalty. She followed him through a dark corridor into an office space that seemed like a vampire layer. The windows were boarded from the outside, the light shining through narrow cracks while dust particles were flying around. He moved to close the door that led to another room on her right, but she managed to briefly spot some of the chemical equipment in there.

"You needn't be concerned. I'm not interested in your little operations here."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Force of habit."

"I want to know if you had something to do with the death of Killian Jones."

"The man was a scumbag," Jefferson said as he sat down on a dirty sofa in the centre of the room, "but I had nothing with that badly executed Samtex fest. Not that it matters now anyway."

"Why do you say that?"

"I'm a dead man Ms. lawyer." He contemplated something for a bit. "You know that I have a daughter?"

Regina didn't want to show it, but the man surprised her there.

"No. What is her name?"

"Grace. She is nine."

"I have a son who's eight."

He raised his tired head to match her staring.

"You then understand. You must. I would do anything for her."

"Is somebody threatening your daughter Mr. Jefferson?"

"Yes… only myself," he said rubbing his forehead. "She deserved a better father."

"Don't say that," Regina said not fully believing her own words looking at the lost man in front of her. Yes, yes, his daughter probably deserved better.

"You know who Deville is?"

"I'm aware of her, yes."

"Well, there is only one road for me. She's gonna kill me. I know because I got a word from the inside. Either this is 'cause she thinks I killed the pretty boy and damaged her operations, or she killed him and she's cleaning the job 'cause FBI is on our tail. Either way, the word spreads fast, my boys already left. The next man that comes here might be the last fellow I see," he explained his voice trembling slightly in the rhythm of his shaking hands.

"Why don't you leave too?"

"She'll find me. She always finds her targets. And I ain't risking her going after Grace. I would rather die."

"Mr. Jefferson, you are a better father to your child if you are alive."

He chuckled, eyes sad, fingers running through his wild hair.

"Actually, no, I'm just a low-life criminal. She will be taken care of. I already made all the arrangements."

Regina was at the loss for words.

"Sad thing Ms. Lawyer, I know. But, don't feel sorry for me, I caused enough damage in my lifetime."

"Mr. Jefferson, do you know who killed Jones?"

He just shook his head no.

"Do you know somebody who could tell me?"

"I can only tell you that Deville's operations in Boston are almost over. FBI is closing in, she knows it, so she's working on transferring it all to new locations. She's becoming desperate, we all do eventually, you know, all us criminals. You go into this, you know it ain't gonna last forever, but your ego gets the best of you. You start thinking you're unbeatable. That's when it all comes back to bite you in the ass."

"Have you ever met detective Gold?"

"Name rings a bell, we cross paths with the police, obviously. But no, I don't remember him specifically. Is he on Deville's payroll?"

"I don't know. I'm trying to find out."

"You are a brave woman walking in here just like that, asking questions."

Regina smiled. "Yes, or a very foolish one."

"We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."

"Lewis Carroll?"

Jefferson just nodded, and Regina could suddenly see a different man. She could see a handsome man with pretty eyes that reads books to his daughter at bedtime.

"You surprise me."

"You should go now. It's not safe here." He was quickly on his feet, escorting Regina back towards the corridor.

"Wait, please, I have a couple of more questions for you."

"No more. They will be here any minute, and you don't want to be caught here, not if you want to go back to your son."

"Wait, ! Perhaps you can get into protective custody, clean yourself up. There are options, it's not too late."

They were at the door in a blink of an eye and she turned towards him, looking at his pale face and the dark corridor behind him. This man that was spiraling towards his own demise, and there was nothing else she could say to him.

"I wish you good luck Mr. Jefferson."

"Thank you Ms. Lawyer. I wish you the same."

He closed the door, and she turned around pausing for a second, temporarily blinded by the sunny day.

Well, that certainly went very unexpectedly, she thought as she got back into her taxi. She took out her phone from her pocket and pressed stop on the recording button, saving the file. She opened her email app and attached it to a quick message.

 _Thank you for that address. Just thought you should know that it seems Mr. Jefferson is on borrowed time. Get him out asap._

She was standing in her kitchen a couple of hours later when she got the call to come to the familiar address, as it seems that she was the last person to talk to Mr. Jefferson while he was alive. This time around the alley was shining from patrol lights, several police vehicles and an ambulance squeezing next to the familiar building. With heavy steps, Regina walked towards an unmarked car with a familiar red haired agent inside.

"DunBroch I thought I told you to get him out of here."

"I don't want to hear it Regina. I did way beyond my call of duty on this one."

"What the hell happened?"

"Come with me, we don't have much time. Local PD is already here, and I got word Gold is on his way. I want you to see the scene before the body is moved."

"Is there any evidence there that links this case to Jones?"

"Not for now."

The agent and the lawyer walked next to each other inside the building. Regina stopped at the entrance to the office. Jefferson was there on the dirty sofa... the back of his skull blown away. She closed her eyes.

That poor child.

"Don't tell me you'll treat this as suicide?"

"That's what it looks like."

"Have you heard the tape? That man was afraid. Deville did this."

"Perhaps, but _for now_ there seems to be no evidence of that. We'll wait for the CSIs to do their magic but, as it is now, all points to his own hand," DunBroch said. "Was he wearing the same clothes you saw him in?"

Regina looked at Jefferson. "No… This shirt is clean. And so are the pants." She closed her eyes. The shoes looked shiny too. "Is it possible this is a set up?"

"Yes, it's very possible. Especially considering that Deville is not a stranger to such cruelty."

Regina inspected his desk. There, on the corner lay a book. Alice in Wonderland. A page was marked. She pointed the book to Agent DunBroch. With gloved hands agent took it and opened the page. There, underlined was a sentence. _We're all mad here._

"I think this is a setup and I think the people who did it were here when I was here."


	10. Voice

Regina watched blurred city lights from the window of her taxi with tired eyes. Closing them during the ride wasn't an option as she could still see the dead pale skin of the former drug dealer every time she blinks.

Damn it… that poor lost soul. Rationally she knew it was senseless, she couldn't seriously be feeling so shaken by what happened to a criminal, but there she was, giving herself a headache. Well, it's not every day she talks to people hours before they are executed in cold blood. And there was no doubt in her mind that that is exactly what happened. Jefferson looked like a guy, a father, who was given a death sentence, not like the one who welcomed it.

The big unexplained issue of that crime scene was why would Deville, the likely culprit behind the murder, leave her any indications of third party involvement, when she or they went through all this trouble to make it look like a suicide. Why leave the book?

Regina took a deep breath and took her phone to call Tink and update her with the events. She needed her assistant to follow the details of the case, possibly with Graham's help.

After only two rings Regina started reciting the notes and tasks as she stopped at one of her favourite decent neighborhood bars for a quick break before walking home. Crime scene details were not something she wanted to discuss where Henry could hear, especially not after that Hansel and Gretel incident.

"Basically, we need to know if something in relation to Jones pops up in the investigation," Regina explained taking a seat behind the counter.

"You think it's the same people responsible for Jones and Jefferson?" Tink asked after noting all the instructions.

"It would be better for Miss Swan obviously, but to be honest Tink, I really can't tell. Jones went down in glory and fireworks in comparison to the way Jefferson was dealt with. It could be that Deville decided she didn't want such a flashy spectacle, or she personalized it in ways we can't fully appreciate without more details on the inner workings of the drug network she is running. Or…" Regina took a couple of seconds to collect her thoughts, "...or we are chasing the wrong girl. Did Graham got back to us on the matter of Milah the angry ex-girlfriend?"

"Not yet. But I'll send him the news, perhaps he's got some insights."

"Very good. Thanks Tink. I'll see you Monday," Regina concluded, placing the phone on the counter.

She smiled. It's Saturday night and her assistant was taking her phone calls. This entire case is softening her a bit, because not only she took a moment to actually notice the fact, but she found herself feeling grateful for the blonde ball of energy. For some reason, her thoughts flashed to the little nine year old girl that lost a parent today and she suddenly only wanted to go home and hug her son and kiss him goodnight. As she was ordering a nice foamy decaf latte to go, an alert flashed across her screen. Twitter DM.

BelleBooks: Stay right where you are. I'll join you in 10.

Regina's eyebrows lifted in surprise as she scanned her environment searching for a pretty brunette. None of the other faces matched what she remembered Mrs. Gold looked like.

She checked the time. It's almost 10 pm. Just her luck. The bookish woman had wonderful timing.

With an audible sigh Regina motioned to the bartender to stop her order and quickly changed it to a large gin and tonic. It was too late for coffee anyway.

However, Henry and Mal were waiting for her, and his babysitter probably wanted to go home. She had an overwhelming need to rest her head on the counter in frustration. This Belle better turn up, or else Regina was quite ready to swallow her pride and call her mother to get details on the lady and her marriage to the detective and chase her down to whatever basement he kept her in.

It's for Emma. It's worth it.

God, it really felt like it was forever since she last saw her client. If she could, she would text her right now to check that she's ok.

As the drink landed in front of her Regina heard a voice from her right.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting. I had to be sure no one was watching you."

Regina turned around and came head to forehead with a pretty brunette woman in her late 30s.

"BelleBooks I presume," Regina said with a sly wink, as if she was introducing herself to a blind date. "I'm Regina Mills."

"Ms. Mills, nice to meet you in person. Belle Gold."

"Gold? I was under the impression you kept your maiden name."

The tiny woman looked fragile but there was an undeniable strength behind her handshake that slightly surprised the lawyer.

She ordered her drink and sat at the high stool next to Regina before casually cutting to the chase: "Ms. Mills, I'm not stupid. I know you are probably not a fan of my husband."

"No, I can't say he is my favourite person."

"Rumple is a difficult man… A difficult man to love."

"And yet you do. You love him?"

Belle just smiled. "I like you lawyers, always getting to the point. No time for pleasantries."

"It's seems we're both quite eager to share. Well, if you must know, my son is waiting for me at home and it's already quite late."

Regina looked at Belle over the edge of her glass. She definitely looked uncomfortable, chewing her lips and picking on the strap of her purse.

"Mrs. Gold. Why are we meeting like two KGB agents? Are you afraid of your husband?"

The woman blushed and closed her eyes for a moment, as if to think of what to say.

"Ms. Mills… Rumple is a difficu.."

"Yes, you've said as much. Difficult man. But, Mrs. Gold, that does not mean he is entailed to your fear or your anxiety."

Belle nodded. When she looked at Regina again, her beautiful big eyes were filled with tears threatening to spill. At that point the bartender passed her a drink, giving her an additional moment to compose her thoughts.

"Can we… can we not talk about my marriage?"

"Of course. I apologise, it's really not any of my business…"

"No, no it's not. I came to help you, not to explain my life choices."

"I understand," Regina nodded, "What can you tell me about the connection between your husband and my client?"

Belle lowered her voice for an extra fraction before replying: "He, he recognized her when they brought her in that night. When he found out about the circumstances in which she was found, he didn't hesitate. He wants to do the same to her what she did to his son."

"His son?"

"My husband's son is Neal Cassidy."

Regina felt her heart beating in her fingers. She took a shaky breath and reached for a sip of her drink to stop herself from screaming in joy, while her brain started computing all the details she knew about Emma's ex.

"I don't understand… How can this be a secret? We looked into Neal Cassidy's file. There was no mention of any relatives."

"There wouldn't be. Rumple never acknowledged him legally."

Regina saw doubt and fear in Belle's eyes.

"Mrs. Gold, how many people know about this connection?"

"Not many," the other woman shakily replied.

"He'll know," it became quite clear to Regina. "Mrs. Gold, your husband has quite a temper and he is hungry for revenge. You should have seen the state Emma was in when I first saw her. They kept her cold and bruised for hours. That's ruthless. He won't forgive such betrayal."

"I know, I saw her file when he left it on the dining table. I know. But I needed him to change so badly. Now, I can't wait any longer, and I couldn't just leave that girl in jail without telling you this."

"Mrs. Gold, you'll need help. Let me help you. If you want a divorce, I have a friend who is fantastic at it. She wants to turn to marriage law and believe me, if anybody can... "

"You don't understand. He won't hurt me."

Regina took a moment, her eyes falling to the counter in front of them where her companion was nursing a virgin Mojito. "You're pregnant."

Belle's lips did not confirm what Regina immediately know was true. Instead her shoulders stiffened and her voice trembled. "I have to go Ms. Mills. Thank you for the drink."

"Wait!" Regina reached over touching Belle's upper arm. "Just a moment."

She took her purse and got Kathryn's card. "Take this. In case you need help. And please, don't hesitate. You have your child to consider too."

An understanding passed between the two women and Belle took the card and nodded. "Good look."

"Good luck to you too."


	11. Moments

N/A: Thank you everyone who has been following, reviewing and reading my story. Your kind words and support are my inspiration.

* * *

"Hello Miss Swan."

Emma fought and lost the battle to control the beating of her heart as she looked up at the dark haired beauty standing on the other side of the bars. There she was, wearing a beautiful silky shirt and pants which, Emma was certain, was as casual as it gets with Regina. She glowed in the late afternoon light, tiny raindrops on her coat catching light.

"Hi Regina," Emma said emphasising the name.

"Oh, yes. But as I promised, I'll call you by your first name after the case is done," Regina smiled as the guard slid open the doors for her. Once they were alone, she looked around before Emma motioned to her to just sit on the bed, on top of which Emma casually wrapped her arms around her legs, head propped on her knee. "Is this a convenient time?" the lawyer joked.

"Yes, I'm sure I can make some time for you. I'm afraid, no tea or cookies though."

"I'll survive."

Regina planned on being cool and composed older lawyer, not to get lost in Emma Swan five seconds after laying eyes on her. Even though she felt… relieved while looking at the blonde, safe and in one piece, nerves were there - getting to her as she brushed her fingers through her hair in completely uncharacteristic display of uneasiness. She was thinking the whole ride here whether it is appropriate to visit her client on a Sunday evening, claiming attorney client privileges with the authorities, when it was so obvious that she only wanted to see her and speak to her… well, privately. Luckily, there was the convenience of news.

"There's been some development. I don't quite know where to start."

"It can't be that bad."

"No… well… The other suspect we had. The guy called Jefferson," Regina waited a bit to see that Emma recognised the name. "Yes, he's dead. Shot in his office… apartment. Somebody made it look like a suicide and… I was there," her voice trembled for a moment, "and he told me Deville is after him and he didn't have anything to do with Hook…"

"Wait, what?" Emma stopped her right there not believing her ears. "You were there?"

"Yes Miss Swan, I went to talk to him, and it's good that I went, because otherwise there's no way we could have known that.."

But Emma wasn't having any of this. "Regina, were you alone?"

"Of course I was alone. I wouldn't bring Henry to meet a drug dealer."

"Oh my god! You can't go out gallivanting into criminal lairs. You haven't seen those people that night. They are dangerous and they are out for blood, and they don't care much about adding extra casualties."

"Look, Miss Swan, I know what I'm doing, I'm not five years old and he wasn't our guy. This might be good for our case. We can see whether we manage to find some parallels between the two deaths for your final acquittal and.."

Emma couldn't hear anything that Regina was saying. Her hands were trembling from the need to touch the other woman, this crazy, perfect, beautiful woman who she fell completely head over heels with in such a short amount of time. Woman who obviously decided she was important enough for saving, important enough for… putting herself at risk… in danger. No one ever did that for her, and it meant so fucking much.

"Regina," she whispered to her, emotions overwhelming her. But Regina was still explaining who knows what step in her plan, not pausing for a second. "Regina, please," she repeated, this time touching the back of Regina's hand to draw her attention and stop her from rambling on. Her fingers were visibly shaking from the connection, but she couldn't help but get closer to her.

Regina stopped speaking at some point, concentrating her attention on their touching hands. She took a shaky breath as she turned her palm underneath the gentle fingers to slowly grip the hand.

"Miss Swan."

"Ssshhh… I know."

They sat their quietly looking at their hands, both pairs of eyes losing focus, lips trembling just a little bit, both fighting for their breaths, the proximity, the touching, the intoxicating smell of other woman completely overwhelming. Emma swallowed thickly and wanting to touch her more she raised her shaky hand, fearing the reaction.

Regina looked up when she felt the warm palm gently touching her cheek. Damn it. A small tear escaped Emma's left eye, and Regina felt she had no choice in the matter, she instinctively just leaned closer and caught it with a soft kiss.

"Regina," Emma whispered to her ear while trying to process the fact those soft lips were touching her skin.

"It will be alright Emma," Regina whispered trying to convince both of them that this is ok. Her lips glided over Emma's skin until they were just a inch away from each other.

"This can't be happening," she said quietly to herself.

"No, no it really can't," the younger woman confirmed, but made no move to gain a bit of distance. Once in Regina's orbit…

"Regina… you do… you do make my head spin you know," she confessed reaching to touch the dark locks of hair, and then there was no choice for either of them, not really. The lips slowly connected in the softest, most gentle kiss. A small moan escaped Regina.

Emma's fingers tangled themselves into her locks to pull the other woman even closer as Regina's other hand clenched Emma's shirt.

The second kiss was just as intoxicating. So incredibly soft, warm and nice.

"I'm your lawyer," she whispered, her deep silky voice caressing the other woman before planting another small kiss.

"I'm in jail," another kiss followed. This time Emma didn't hesitate. To hell with caution. She slowly parted her lips, and a second later the other woman followed. The very moment their tongues connected both of them felt in their entire bodies.

How could something so simple as a kiss feel so erotic Regina couldn't understand. A second later, she could not think at all. Every touch of Emma's tongue was sending her spiralling into lust, every little moan the blonde made she felt in the depths of her belly, the taste of her leaving the normally straight headed lawyer in a haze. She was half conscious of Emma's fingers in her hair pulling her closer, and her own hand twisting Emma's grey shirt in a knot by her waist, barely managing to resist sliding pass the cotton to feel the warm skin.

She pressed harder into the kiss, but the need for stupid breathing had to be satiated, so she moved her lips to the Emma's cheek as they drew breaths.

"Regina, whoa." Emma bit her lower lip for a second as they drew apart for a couple of inches, and then raised her eyes to meet Regina's who was now staring at their hands. She caressed the lush locks of dark hair until the beautiful women's looked up.

"I'm so sorry Miss Swan, this was very unprofessional of me."

Emma just shook her head. "No, you don't get to say that line after the most perfect kiss of my life."

"But I am your lawyer. I have to do my job. This was not me doing my job." Regina was getting stressed out of her mind. That was perfect. Emma was right. That kiss was perfect. But there were rules and she has to get her out first. I mean they are in a fucking jail right now kissing like everything is alright. When it's not.

"Ok. So... do your job then. Get me out," Emma said quietly, "but you have to know, this is not something I can just forget about. Not when I wanted it since I first saw you."

"I'm afraid Miss Swan. I'm not likely to forget it either," she admitted.

"Good. I'm relieved. Now," Emma reluctantly removed her hand from Regina's, "don't stress about it. Relax and tell me how are you getting me out? I can't stay here while you're putting yourself in danger."

Regina took a moment to collect her thought. How is she getting her out? Oh yes, The Plan.

"I'm going after Gold. I'm failing another complaint against him for police brutality. Or I might talk to him first and see if I get anywhere. The reason why he was hell bent on keeping you in jail is quite simple, good old-fashion revenge", Regina could see the look of confusion in Emma's eyes, "Neal Cassidy, your ex-boyfriend who you helped put in jail, is Gold's son."

"What?"

"Gold's wife told me."

"That slimy detective is Neal's dad? I can't believe it. Also, come on… he has a wife?"

Regina smiled. "Aha… She's quite sweet. My bet is that he keeps her in his basement, but who knows. Modern relationships."

"Also, another murder of a rival gang member cements quite clearly that there is something going on in that drug network. We are looking into possible meeting with Deville to see how willing she is to speak to us, and there is the ex-girlfriend that my private eye is trying to find. I'm quite confidant I can get you out on bail by Wednesday."

"Good. Because if you're going to see Deville, I'm going to be there with you."

Regina shook her head. "Absolutely not. We can't risk doing something that will get you into trouble."

"Well, you said it yourself. It's going to be safe and quick so there's nothing to worry about. By the way, do you think I should try and contact Neal? I'm pretty sure he found God in jail or something like that. We talked once or twice and he was sorry for the entire ordeal. I'm sure I can get him to talk reason to detective Gold."

"That might be, but let's wait a bit. I want to see what how Gold reacts when I tell him to back off."

Emma nodded and checked the clock on the wall. "How long can you stay."

"I'm sure I'll be fine for another 10 min or so. Emma," Regina waited to get her full attention, "how are you feeling overall. Your back healed fine?"

"Yes, I believe so. But I'm so impatient to leave this place. Every minute is like an hour… well, except when I have visitors. I have a feeling it's going to be even worse now," she said with a sly smile. "Regina, when I'm out of here… Can I ask you out, as out on a date?"

"I guess you're not talking about that dinner I already agreed to?"

"No, I'm talking about a date... in a romantic sense."

"To be honest Emma, I haven't really thought about it. I… I never really dated a woman before. And I have my son to think about. And you are my client," Regina lied through her teeth. Never really thought about it? Lol.

As she rambled on Emma smiled, "So, it's not a no."

Regina took a deep breath and agreed, "No, it's not a no."

"What kind of food do you like?"

"Miss Swan! Seriously. How about we get you out of here first?" Regina replied.

"Yes, fine I agree with the plan. Am I the first woman you kissed?"

"Yes you are," Regina said a little bit embarrassed by the fact.

"I'm sorry I'm not a bit more up to standards. We're in jail, it's all a bit pathetic..."

"Stop talking Miss Swan," Regina interrupted her, "I know circumstances are not ideal. And I might not be the best in showing it, but that kiss… I wouldn't have it any other way." Seeing an enthusiastic look on Emma's face, she quickly added, "But, no more talking about it."

"Until I'm out, you mean."

"At the very least."

"So, I won't talk about it… until Wednesday, didn't you say?"

"Right."

Emma's face cleared up to a serious frown again. "Seriously Regina, going by yourself to see a well known drug lord was not very smart. Please, don't do anything crazy like that again."

"I know how to take care of myself Miss Swan."

"I'm sure you do… It's just, please, I don't want anything to happen to you. I'm here all alone, and I can't help you if you need me. And I have a feeling I will be dreaming about that night for a while and I don't want you to to have to go through something similar."

Regina ducked her head. "I'll be careful, I promise."

She debated for a moment whether to go to another heavy topic, but Emma did serve her an opening. "Emma, what _do_ you dream about?"

Blonde woman closed her eyes to focus. "Funnily enough I don't dream the gory details. The severed arm or the fight and the chase… I dream about being lost in the waves. That night sea looked like it was calm, but it wasn't. Once I was in the water, I realised it's not going to be that easy. I had a clear direction when I started swimming but then soon I was panicking because the current was pulling me and I thought I will never reach the shore. I was swimming through the dark and cold waves. My arms were getting heavy, and my eyes were burning from the salty sea. That feeling… that is what I dream about."

Regina pulled the other woman's head to rest on her shoulder. "That is ok Emma. In real life you reached the shore. And you would succeed again if you needed to."

Emma breathed in Regina's perfume and enjoyed the feel of Regina and her silk covered shoulder. They stayed like this for couple of more minutes taking in the comfort and the closeness, until it was Regina's turn to leave.

"I have Henry waiting at home."

"I hope to see you soon," Emma said with a hopeful smile blossoming on her face.

"Emma I said…"

"You said it's not a no."

"Ok, let's leave it at that."

She took Emma's hand and moved it closer to her face. Emma watched in shock as Regina planted a feather like kiss on the middle of her palm.

"Call me if you need something."

At that she stood up, picked up her coat and went to the bars.

"Guard!"

The doors were opened a second later and Emma could only watch the woman who routinely turns her brain into mush walk away with that amazing sway of hips.

Please, please don't change your mind. Please give me a chance, she thought.

But she knew nothing was guaranteed. Regina never kissed a woman before and Emma knew that situation is probably super difficult for her. Also, out of sight, out of mind? Let's hope not.

Regina was glad she actually took her own car to visit Emma. Before the visit the decision had to do with easy Sunday traffic and saved time, but after it was all about the fact that she really needed a moment on her own. She tossed the coat in the back and as soon as she sat in the driver's seat her hand slammed the wheel.

She kissed her client. Fuck. She really kissed her client. And she enjoyed it immensely.

Regina felt the frustration and the anger raising up. No… no, she shouldn't get mad. Sometimes these things happen. Before she disbars herself, she'll get her out and then she'll decide what to do.

She took a deep breath, shook her head and reversed from the parking lot.

A glass of cider and some quiet time before bed, that is what she needs.


	12. Friends

N/A: Thank you so much guys for sticking with the story. I'm very grateful for every reaction I get :*

* * *

Tink would read her boss's selection of clothes like some people read daily horoscope, so she knew that the Monday morning will turn into a Defcon 3 situation as soon as Regina breezed through the door. It's always dangerous when she adds leather. All black with silver jewelry? The only thing that the Evil Queen was missing were the dragons. Full battle mode on before 9 am.

"I assume there's been a development? Other than the dead drug dealer I mean?"

"Correct," Regina confirmed as she took her position behind her desk. "We are going to solve the problem of that little pest Gold, and we shall do it very soon so that Emma can join us for a celebratory Sunday brunch."

"Shall I call and book a table at Granny's for this fiesta?" Tink deadpanned.

"Perhaps you can first call Graham and check why is he late."

"He isn't late. Meeting is at 9."

"Very well. I'll do some prep work before he arrives and then we can have a short meeting."

"Your mother called twice. She's threatening to send the immigration office on me if I don't provide her with your personal phone number."

Regina just rolled her eyes. "Never mind that, you have you green card."

"Kathryn wants to know about lunch."

"Tell her Thursday, and then find a reason to postpone until the next week."

"Regina!"

Tink couldn't know why she refused to face Kat right now. Kat never outright pressed for information, but she will ask about Emma and Regina was a bit confused about her feelings and guilty over overstepping attorney-client relationship, and she just didn't have the energy to lie or omit.

There are more important things we need to worry about.

"Oh, and Tink? Book yourself a ticket to Florida for now, or as early as possible. I have an assignment for you. It won't take longer than a couple of hours."

Tink's smile lit the entire room.

"Yeeey… Can I stay a bit more though and go for a Disneyland tour?"

Even though her first instinct was to mock the little one, Regina actually gave it a thought.

"If you do well, sure. Pity you can't take Graham with you. You children would have a blast."

Tink paused for a moment and quietly added, "Yes it is pity. Could I Regina? Could I invite Graham too?"

Regina paused with a look of utter surprise.

Well, well, well… ain't he a charmer? Regina, do not get involved into possible inner drama in your team. Even better, prevent possible inner drama in your team. Ah. If only her own moral standings on this very issue were not recently so compromised.

"You know what? Do what you want. I don't want to know. Mizaru, Kikazaru and all that I say." Tink still had that massive smile, now with pink cheeks. " I'll brief you both when he gets here."

As soon as Tink was out of office, Regina started working on a complaint. She will get it ready for Gold to enjoy. And if she gets Emma out on bail, perhaps she can reward Tink and let her stay in the sunshine state for a couple of days. Yes, this feels good.

* * *

That evening Regina felt she had the necessary ammo to attack the police station. It started well enough with her almost giving poor Leroy a heart attack. Nolan got a short nod, and then she managed to startle both Spencer and Gold just by suddenly appearing at the chief detective's office. Good entrance is 20 percent of the game.

"Hello boys."

Men, previously hunched over Gold's desk sprang apart.

"Regina. Lovely to see you dearie," Gold managed to choke out through his teeth. "Now, how can we exactly help you?"

She turned to the attorney. "Well, Spencer, you can call the judge in a minute or two and tell him to change the bail conditions for my client first thing in the morning," Regina explained in her most business voice.

"And why would I do that?" he asked crossing his arms on his chest.

"Otherwise I'll be forced to warn the media about certain publicly known facts. Such as that my client was denied bail even though she is of no threat to anyone, that she was severely mistreated by the police and the prosecutor's office for which there are complaints in process with the internal affairs, that the murders of highly ranked drug dealers continued upon her incarceration, and most of all, that she is being targeted solely because she was a witness in the trial of one Neal Cassidy. You know Neal, ha Gold?"

She looked at Gold straight in his eyes. "Do you want to explain your previous connection with my client to your friend Spencer here, or should I have the honor?"

"Regina, you shouldn't play games with me."

"What are you gonna do Gold? Run screaming to my mother?"

Gold was doing the math while engaging in the staring contest with the Evil Queen.

"Regina, it's not exactly customary for the judge to change their minds about bail," Spencer warned from his side of the room.

"Well, it's not everyday that the judge would get dragged in a conspiracy scandal just for a poor decision like that. See… you boys should think twice before you book your next golf match. These are the records of the the last 20 times in the last two months a detective, a prosecutor and a judge, met each other in different constellations. Some of the occurrences were in some fairly popular bars. Just mentioning that in case any of you are into stand-up comedy."

"This proves nothing Regina. Companionship is not illegal," Gold hissed. "Besides, how are you going to prove your allegations? Planning to drag my wife into this? What a low attempt on your part. She would not go public with information on Neal."

"Oh, but of course not. However, your son would," Regina calmly replied. Underneath Gold's gold stare she took out her phone. "Where are they? Oh there they are. So cute. I have to say he doesn't have your features." She turned the phone to Gold. On it there was a smiling selfie of Graham, Tink and Neal Cassidy. "That's my team in Jacksonville. Look who they found! And they say he is a great guy too, well on his way to redemption. Was not very pleased when he found out about what is happening to Emma. Oh, they also sent me something called a snap. I don't know if you're interested…"

"It's enough Regina."

"Is it?" she asked turning to Spencer.

"Look Regina, this does not mean that I am taking the charges off," haughty attorney said.

"Oh, don't worry Albert. That day will come too."

Maximum preparation and meticulous execution.

* * *

Time is bendy, twisty and can play tricks with your brain, Emma remembered it quite clearly from her first incarceration. Yet it seemed that her body forgot the experience because it was taking the unbearably long hours pretty badly. Her calves were hard, her shoulders and neck were achy, head felt incredibly heavy and she was just really tired.

Perhaps she can ask Regina for some vitamins… or a massage. That would be lovely. She could bet Regina has soft hands and who knows, maybe she's skilled in that department too. Emma exhaled. She could just imagine the touch. So soft.

Yes, that was another issue. She now know that Regina tastes absolutely divine, she knows how soft her lips are and how absolutely hot are all those little noises she makes.

Yes, perhaps just vitamins for now. She can't give in to these thoughts now, she's still in jail, she has a rational side of a brain. She puffed into her pillow actively trying not the scream.

"Swan, you have a visitor, make yourself presentable," a guard barked on her from the other side of the bars. She shot right out of her bed with her heart dropping straight to her lower belly. She ran her fingers through her hair trying to make the mane look a bit better, she pinched her cheeks a couple of times to add some colours to her face, straightened her shirt and wished for some nice perfume. The cheap shower gel she had at her disposal could not be appealing for somebody as sophisticated as her lawyer.

The guard opened the door with a smirk on his face and escorted her into a visitor's room. There she was shocked to find a handsome face of August Booth sitting across the table. Surprised and not very pleasantly so, she forgot to control her reaction, so the smart men just nodded.

"That frown on your face tells me I'm not who you expected."

"No," she quietly said while taking her seat opposite of her (former) employer.

"How are you doing Emma?"

Emma rolled her eyes in response. "What are you doing here?"

August was startled for a moment, but after taking a closer look at the blonde he realised she was quite right to feel cautious. He was, for all intents and purposes, a stranger.

"I came to check up on you, see how you're doing."

Her face somewhat softened, as she gave a tight smile. "As well as it can be expected. I'm a bit achy and tired… And concerned… But my lawyer had some good news yesterday so I'm hopeful… How is the agency? Any interesting marks rolling in?"

August smiled. "You know, Emma, you suck at small talk."

A chuckle escaped her lips as she shyly scratched her nose. "Indeed."

"Is there anything I can get you? Is there anything you need?"

"How about some bail money?"

"You promise you won't skip?"

"Yes."

"Consider it solved, no premium."

"Well, now I only have to get the judge to approve it."

"Piece of cake. I'm sure your hot lawyer will get that sorted out in no time."

Emma smirked. "You noticed it too? The hotness factor."

"Are you kidding? It's difficult not to," August said leaning slightly towards Emma. After a couple of seconds, he seemingly made up his mind, leaned across the table and whispered, "Have you told her you liked her?"

"Not in those words. But I definitely said too much… and you shouldn't be encouraging me. You are not my friend and she's my lawyer."

"Too bad. I want to encourage you. You know, you're not anything like I thought you would be."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? And what did you think I would be like?"

"Well… You definitely have a very tough exterior, but you are much more gentle than I expected. Your manners are softer when you're relaxed. You have a beautiful smile and you are warm… kind. Also quite hot."

"Whoa.. August, if you haven't noticed… I'm not interested."

"There you go again, I was just telling you how I see you. Not trying to score any points Emma, give me a break. Besides," August continued crossing his arms, "one can see from miles that your heart is definitely taken."

"Oh my god, stop it please. It's embarrassing to listen to."

"I don't care, it's the truth. You know, I respected your decision not to ever come to the office, and I never insisted. You were doing your part of the job, I felt there's no need. But, I regret it. I really should have come knocking."

"August Booth, you are super forward pain in the ass."

"Yes, but only when I can be."

They were both silent for a moment.

"August? Have you looked into the Jones case? Is there really nothing unusual about how it landed into our corner? Are you sure there wasn't any indicators they wanted me on the case?"

But no matter how much he tried, he still came out empty.

"Perhaps it really is just a coincidence."

"Yeah… maybe."

"Can I offer you a piece of advice?"

"You are asking my permission now? You've been talking non-stop about whatever comes to your mind since you got here."

"Don't let your life pass you by Emma. I know a little bit about regrets and I can tell you, they hurt more with time."

"Thank you August. But hey, you came to talk to me in jail, all nice and stuff. I guess I'll have to consider you… a friend or something."

"Of all the horrors," he laughed with a pleased twinkle in his eyes. "Because you kindly awarded me the status of a friend, allow me to lend you these."

He put a paper bag on the table. Emma peaked. Inside there were several books, empty notebook and a drawing pen with some crayons. Seeing the soft colours approved by the authorities, she smiled. "God, this is wonderful, but I can't draw."

August just raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. "So then… use it to solve mathematical functions, write poetry, develop a new Harry Potter book, I don't care."

"Thank you."

"No, Emma… I owe you big time. I feel so guilty over the fact I got you into this situation, I didn't know what to say to you. I'm an old fool."

"It's fine, really. It will all be ok, Regina has my back And what the fuck August? You're not old."

He swung an imaginary glass in her direction. "Here's looking at you, kid."


	13. Help

N/A: Thank you guys so much for reading! This is a very important chapter for me and I hope you'll like it :*

* * *

Regina had to wait two more long days for the evil triumvirate to work around legal matters and produce a court decision concerning Emma's bail. She was relieved when she received the paper stating new conditions and bail amount for 120 000 US dollars. Sidney Glass was a little weasel and that wasn't a small amount at all, but Regina didn't have any doubts that her investment will be safe and more importantly, that regardless of that, Emma Swan is worth every penny.

That said, she was happy Tink was away. Not particularly because she enjoyed receiving all those filtered face snaps from Florida (that was only moderately entertaining), but because she actually didn't want to answer any questions about that particular bank transfer. More importantly, she didn't know what she would say, or how she could possibly explain. She was having troubles articulating it to herself alone.

It was all Miss Swan's fault. Going through the day without thinking about those kisses was challenging. Going to bed at night without thinking about those kisses, and soft skin and beautiful smile was damn right impossible.

How does one deal with such uncontrollable infatuation? She certainly wasn't supposed to be visiting, yet there she was, going through her stocks of cider in the late hours, looking at the pale beauty on her screen, remembering the taste of her skin and the rush that accompanied it. All she wanted to do was to get her here, preferably on her lap so that her entire body is easily reached by Regina's fingers, kiss her more, get rid of all the clothes between them and lose herself in the feelings and sensations.

While Regina was fully aware that there is nothing wrong in lusting after another woman, her brain was firing questions at her, questions she couldn't answer… not by herself. And she needed answers, she needed them badly, and she needed them before she sees Emma again. Because accidentally toying with Emma's feelings was, somehow, just not an option. She owed it to both of them to come to terms with what she was experiencing.

So, after another restless night she finally decided to capitulate and go with her original plan and actually talk about this to another fellow human. Like what most mature adults do.

She walked into Archie's office like she had been announced by a formal presidential protocol, but she had a feeling Archie saw right through her as soon as he glanced up from his desk.

"It's good to see you Regina. You look well."

"Thank you Archie."

She discovered the gentle therapist when Henry was about six years old and she had some anxiety issues over deep fear that her son will reject her once she explains to him what it means to be adopted. After she told him, Henry was sad and confused so they went to see Archie together for several following months. He was great with Henry and not intimidated by Regina, and he helped them find their family groove back.

"Tea?"

"Yes please."

He got up and after a minute or two he placed his notebook and two cups of Earl Grey on the little coffee table between two comfy lounge chairs.

"So, how are you? How is Henry?"

Regina's face lit up. "He is fine. School is going really well. He has good relationship with his friends. He is taking care of a cat for one of my clients. He loves it. And we are doing very well," she said smiling. She took a cup, testing the temperature of her drink. "How am I? I've developed… well, recently I've…," she took a deep breath and gathered her thoughts. "I think I'm a lesbian. Or, well… bisexual I guess should fit me better." She's paying by the hour, might as well just jump to the point.

If Archie was surprised, he didn't show it in the slightest. "Is this the first time you've said it out loud?"

Regina's took a small sip of her drink. "Yes it is."

"Does it make you uncomfortable to say it?"

She took a moment to ponder the answer. "Actually no… no it doesn't."

"And it shouldn't. Sexuality is something human beings should explore while we're alive. There is nothing unusual about coming to terms with it at any stage in life, and there's no reason to feel uncomfortable to talk about it."

"Really? Don't most people go through this in their college years? Experimenting sexually, finding their identity and such?"

Archie fixed his falling glasses. "Some do. Some don't."

"I mean, I sort of knew that I don't mind the idea. But never before I acted on any of it. Could this be the reason my previous relationships failed?"

"What do you think? Were you comfortable with men? Intimately and romantically speaking?"

"Yes I was, well, mostly. It's just that I wasn't really happy with them, so I stopped bothering after a while. I had Henry and dating just wasn't in my schedule."

"And now you want to bother again? You've met someone."

"Yes." She took a long time to exhale before explaining the details. "I don't know what I'm doing." Archie raised his eyebrows… Now that was a surprise. He knew Regina for years and he was aware of her reputation. Reluctance and insecurity were not in her programming, not when it came to relationships to people who were not her immediate family.

"What do you mean?"

"She's my client. And she's accused of a serious crime. And I don't even know her properly. I've literally just met her. It's completely inappropriate."

Archie just shrugged his shoulders like it's nothing. "You're a great lawyer. She'll be out of whatever trouble she's in very soon, and you will find the time to get to know her. You shouldn't worry so much. Regina, you deserve your chance in happiness, just like everybody else."

Regina just rolled he r eyes like that has nothing to do with anything.

"Do you believe in such thing as love at first sight?" she suddenly asked.

"Love at first sight?"

Regina raised her eyebrow. "Really Archie? That's your approach? Turning my last words into interrogative sentences? How textbook of you."

"Sometimes I forget how smart people can be resistant to normal people therapy," he said rubbing his forehead. "So, you are in love with her?"

"What?"

"Are you in love with your client?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I can't be."

"Very well."

"It's just that she is very smart and charming. Has a beautiful smile and kind eyes. She's been through a lot, and yet she is so brave and persistent. I guess I'm really admiring her."

"Alright. So we don't call it love, we call it admiration. You admired her at first sight. Does she admire you back?"

Regina softly bit the inside of her cheek.

"We kissed."

Archie had a very pleased look on his face. "Regina, look at me," he waited for a second to get her attention, "you deserve the best. You deserve to be with someone who makes you happy, and you deserve to kiss whoever you want to kiss, have sex with whoever you want to have sex with. My advice? Get this woman out of trouble and ask her on a date."

Regina gently laughed. "Well, she's way ahead of you. She already asked me out when she gets out of jail."

"And when is she getting out?"

Regina checked her watch. "Twenty minutes ago."

"Why are you here talking to me if you were supposed to welcome her and make sure she gets home safely?"

Regina let out a shaky breath. "I was avoiding her. We kissed and we shouldn't have. I was just so angry at myself. How could I let this happen? It goes against everything what attorney-client relationship is supposed to be about, and I just… I keep forgetting myself when I'm around her."

"Sounds like that scares you more than it angers you."

"It does scare me. I'm petrified."

"You know Regina. The only other time you were this scared of another person is when you first came to me about Henry."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Are you a kind of person that gets rattled easily?"

She waved her head no.

"No, I don't think you are. Your reaction is beyond what you consider to be your everyday behavior. What does that tell you?"

"That I… admire her a lot."

"Regina, be honest towards yourself and be honest towards her. I'm not saying marry this woman. You might decide she isn't the one after all, and that is fine. You might meet another woman or a man that you… admire, and that is ok too. But I can tell you, as your therapist, as your friend, and as a member of the LGBT+ community, that we, either young or old, need to learn how to accept ourselves and be true to what we want and what we need. Discovering what that is is a beautiful journey worth taking."

Regina considered his words and then smiled dangerously. "You know Archie, the good thing about this is that I might actually manage to give my mother a heart attack."

Therapist just nodded knowingly. "Well then. It's win-win situation if I recall correctly the nature of your relationship."

Regina sipped her tea. "Are you allowed to make those kind of comments to a patient?"

"I probably shouldn't. But I also do consider you a friend. And I'm just calling it like it is."

"But you'll still charge me for the hour?"

"I told you before that if you want, we could have these conversations in a park with Henry and Pongo playing." Archie looked at her knowingly. He knew that a big reason why Regina refused his offer of friendship after he stopped seeing the Mills family in professional capacity was because she refused to trust him without being protected by doctor-patient privilege. Regina's trust was hard to win.

"That's ok. I prefer to keep this separate from Henry."

"I understand, and I fully respect that, I cannot stress that enough."

She gently picked on her bracelets, frowning at her thoughts.

"How will I know? Will I ever know?"

"For sure? You might. A lot of people are very certain of their identities, even if they come to grasp with them later in life. Some are not. Both is perfectly acceptable."

When Regina didn't answer, Archie continued, "Regina, acting on your wants and needs does not mean you are relinquishing control of your life."

"It sure feels like it," Regina muttered. "I know this uneasiness I feel stems from my need to control my life's circumstances. I understand that about myself, but I can't help it. That's the only way I know how to function."

"Perhaps you are selling yourself short. But, well then… take control. Get your client out of troubles and then decide what you want to do."

"I think I've already decided what I want to do."

"Was this when you first saw her?"

Regina rolled her eyes at the cheeky therapist but answered nothing. She knew it anyway.

* * *

Emma was informed about her bail being posted by a jail administrator. The elevation she felt was quickly squashed by the realisation that Regina wasn't the one to share the good news. Nope, her lawyer was on radio silence and she really hoped that it wasn't because she was freaking out about that kiss. Well, does it really matter?

So they shared a hot kiss. So what? The usual concerns started roaming around her head. It could very well be that Regina isn't interested in a woman like her, she is not that sophisticated, she has her problems and her past. Regina probably wisely wants to just quit before any of them get more ideas to pursue more kisses, and so on and so forth...

These thoughts filled Emma with deep sadness and a dose of frustration. It's easy for August to preach all that Carpe Diem shit, he isn't the one questioning his worth in jail. Well, in a little while she'll have the opportunity to do the very same thing in the privacy of her home. Different setting, with only one less issue to obsess about.

She went through the administrative procedure half automatically, numbed by the fact no one will be waiting for her outside. Regina could be. Perhaps she wants to surprise her? Amusing though was pleasant but somehow Emma knew it was futile. At least she was certain she will see her again. They do have this case to conclude, trail to go through.

The guard took her to the last counter where she finally signed a piece of paper and she was free. Well, ish.

She stepped outside of the building, squeezing her eyes in the sunshine while thinking about which direction to the closest bus stop. Her place was on the other side of town, and she didn't have enough change to call a taxi.

"Emma?"

She turned to the voice calling her, and upon recognising the two people smiled widely.

"Oh my god, Rubes?"

The leggy brunette ran to her speechless friend and threw her arms around her in a big hug.

"Emma you dumbass idiot!"

Ruby took a step back and hit her right in her shoulder.

"Auch! Easy, I'm hurt."

"You're hurt? I'll show you hurt you loser. Why haven't you called me?"

"I didn't know where you were!"

"Seriously? I have an email address and we have internet in this century."

Emma had the decency to look a little bit ashamed. She knew that it was stupid not to call either of her friends, but she really couldn't deal with the drama. "Ruby, please."

Seeing how pathetic the blonde looked, Ruby softened. "Promise me you won't do this again."

"I promise I won't get arrested for murdering a drug dealer ever again."

"Good."

August approached two friends.

"I see you've met my boss."

"Yes, I've called the agency a couple of days ago when I didn't know where you where. I totally freaked out when August updated me on what has been happening."

The man in question was visibly pleased to see Emma out of confinement. "Emma, I'll take you home. I hope you don't mind the ride."

Emma noticed the motorcycle to their right. "Not at all. Thank you August. And thank you for the bail."

"No need to thank me for either of those." At Emma's confused look he explained, "Your lawyer beat me to it."

"What? Regina posted my bail?"

"She sure did," August said, 'I told you so' face prominently at display.

Ruby picked up on the importance of mentioned lawyer. "Emma, do you have anything to share?"

"No, I do not want to share."

Even though she was happy to see her friend back, Emma was not in a mood to explain herself and, moreover, she wasn't sure what to make out of Regina's action. That was, it was evident, beyond what was ever expected from an attorney to do.

"Anyway Ruby, where are you staying? Are you staying?"

"I came back. I got a job offer. I figured it's time to return. I'm staying at this friend's place, it's fine."

Emma looked at her friend, her cheeks slightly flushed, glancing at August. Is there something going on there? Whoa.

"Whatever guys. I'm gonna go home and rest a bit. I want my shower, I want my pyjamas and I want to cuddle my cat." As soon as she said it, she felt a pang in her heart. That's right. Mal is now making new friends. "Look, you can go. I'll just grab a taxi, if you have a 20 to borrow."

August wouldn't hear it. "No, Emma, that was not our plan. Come on, I'll give you a ride. Ruby, I'll see you later."

Emma wanted to protest, really not wanting to be a burden to her friends. But Ruby stopped her before she said anything else.

"Of course. Emma, rest a bit and relax, all right? I hope to talk to you soon, and we can go through all the little details of your recent adventures."

"Yes Rubes. I'm sorry I don't have the energy right now, but I'm so happy to see you're back. I've really missed having you close," Emma said truthfully, for a moment there internally cringing about having to answer a lot of questions again. She was never a sharing type to begin with, and that is unlikely to change.

"I missed you too honey. How about tomorrow or this weekend, when you had some time to settle in?"

Emma agreed, grateful that her friend recognised she needed some space.

Ruby kissed her cheek and motioned something to August who nodded and gave Emma a helmet. In a second they were driving away.

Motorcycles were never Emma's favourite mode of transport; they felt a bit too exposed and she had a sense she could never control them fully. And yet, being driven like this, holding on to August and just relaxing and feeling the wind on her face felt like the perfect cure. The city life was moving past her in a blur of buildings and trees, with traffic noises and the loud racket of the motorcycle pleasantly drowning her thoughts. It was a bit chilly, but she didn't mind.

They were in front of her place in no time.

"Thank you August so much. So? Ruby?" she asked handing the helmet back.

"It's nothing serious Emma. Just, you know… Carpe Diem."

Emma ran her fingers through the messy hair and winked at August. "Good call man, she is a wonderful person. Well, I'll see you soon I guess."

"I'll see you soon kid," he saluted.

Emma waved as he drove away and got herself up the stairs. She opened the door with the key under her mat. She'll have to thank Regina for that. Regina.

As soon as she stepped in, all the suppressed emotions came back in a vicious assault on her body. Emma closed the door, and the next moment slid down. Sitting on her floor, she breathed in her apartment, glancing at the carpet, her sofa, her things, kitchen counter… no Mal. She felt the tears bubbling up to the surface, and this time, she did nothing to stop them. Suddenly, it was like something broke deep inside of her. She let out a proper sob that she was holding in since those cops found her on the shore. Tears cascading down her face and down her tangled hair, fingers shaking and heart aching, she just let go.


	14. Downpour

N/A: I really hope you won't be disappointed. It's short but (warning) a bit sweet. I'm talking saccharin.

Thank you for sticking with the story!

xoxo

* * *

Emma's torrential downpour finally came to a halt under the shower, where her blurred brain slowly switched from throbbing ache to quiet satisfaction of being clean of jail. On the steamy bathroom mirror she tried to check the marks on her back, but other than faint bruising of her shoulder and the thin line on her upper back, she couldn't see much. That was good.

She was home, safe and sound. Shockingly, after a short stint in jail like that, she felt so much more connected with her actual life and with all the little things in her little apartment that made parts of it. That is when she noticed that her apartment was just a little bit… off.

Must be the police search.

Opening her closet she was shocked to find her clothes more neatly arranged than ever.

Must be Regina.

The very thought of her beautiful lawyer arranging her clothes triggered those little butterflies in her stomach. She rolled her eyes at how silly she was being. Seriously, she should be feeling at least a little bit disturbed by the notion of a foreign person going through her things, and while that was very much the case with the idea of police officers infiltrating her space, with Regina, not so much. She opened her underwear drawer and took a first set that came under her hand, not looking at it at all, afraid of seeing the evidence of Regina's touch.

Regina choose cotton for Emma.

Dressed in a comfy white sweater and feeling a lot more like herself Emma made some coffee and picked up a pen and paper to note down the bits of her todo list.

Nothing useful in the fridge meant pizza for dinner, no computer at her desk meant checking with her employer to get a temporary replacement and no Mal meant she needs to woman up and call her lawyer to get her cat back.

That was in order of difficulty.

Perhaps she can manage that last bit in the morning, when she's not feeling this emotional. Because, as much as it was stupid to admit, Regina added to the hurt. She felt hurt that Regina didn't call her to tell her she's getting out, or checked to make sure she got home safe, or send her a stupid message about their next meeting. Was she that annoyed at Emma? Was she that disgusted by their kiss? Serves her right for kissing attorneys.

These and similar old doubts kept torturing the blonde until, predictably, there was a knock at the door. Sure enough, on the other side of the peephole there she stood, looking wonderful in a grey dress and a coat hanging over her arm. Emma took a deep breath.

Fuck.

She wasn't actually expecting Regina to show up in her apartment. That kind of things only happens in rom-coms. Maybe this is a rom-com. All this time she thought her life is cheap Lifetime drama, instead it could be an absurdist romance? Sure, whatever.

Regina impatiently knocked once more, and Emma on the other side of the door bounced back.

Stop beating you stupid cowardly heart.

She ran her fingers through her hair, took a breath and opened the door. Their eyes met instantly and it took Regina a couple of seconds to take in the blonde beauty with slightly red, swollen eyes looking at her with a mixture of sadness and wonder.

"Miss Swan, hi."

Emma took another second just before she managed to mumble.

"Hi Regina. Come in, please."

Regina took a couple of steps to enter, and it seemed to Emma that she was being so ridiculously cautious, like walking into enemy lines. She closed the door.

"Relax Regina, I'm not going to jump you. It's clear to me you don't…"

Regina didn't let her finish the sentence. She stepped right into Emma's personal space, only a breath apart.

"It's clear to you I don't what?" and the sentence was so deep, so velvety, that Emma's knees buckled under the pressure of it.

"The only thing I don't want, Emma, is to see you upset or hurt. I'm sorry."

Emma felt every nerve in her body awakening. But still… she couldn't allow this woman to toy with her.

"I wasn't upset because of us or…"

But Regina wouldn't hear it. She just closed the distance and melted into the other woman. The feel of Emma against her body was all she remembered, expected and more.

Their lips crashed into a fierce kiss that erased a hefty dose of anxiety for one, and depth of hurt for the other woman. Regina pushed even more, and Emma felt the door against her back, and soft hands first on her jeans and then sliding under her sweater to encircle her naked waist. She moaned at the feel of fingers on her skin, teeth on her lower lips, tongue stroking hers without hesitation.

Heavens… is this karma giving back to her? Did she had to go through hell for a perfect touch like this one? She barely registered that her own hands cupping Regina's neck and face were provoking similar responses from the brunette.

Regina thought it was ridiculous how effortlessly she was losing control of the situation. Every little connection of their bodies was pushing her into thousands little shocks, so she just wanted more, more skin, more Emma, more feelings.

A low "Emma" escaped her lips and she pushed, her tight sliding between Emma's, her dress rising up from the movements of her trembling body. She moaned as she felt the shaped leg pressing against her core, and a moment later her curiosity and feelings completely took over her actions as her hands traveled up underneath the loose fabric to touch soft breasts covered in delicate thin fabric. She lightly squeezed, and Emma couldn't breathe any more. One final stroke of her tongue against Regina's, and her head fell back against the door, exposing her neck to kisses and soft bites.

After regaining some of her senses she lightly pulled on the luscious brown hair until they were again looking at each other's lips.

"Regina… do we have to stop? I have a feeling we have to stop," she grudgingly admitted.

Lawyer looked at her client, admiring creamy skin, lips, rosy cheeks and bright eyes.

"Yes we do. I don't want to, but we have to," she said, slowly moving her hands down Emma's body.

All Emma could think at that moment was fuck my life, her voice that raspy and seductive and has some sort of magical powers, and this attorney-lawyer bullshit is not worth the effort. So she lightly caressed Regina's cheek and leaned for another earth-shattering kiss. Moments later they managed to finally separate.

"So… do you want some coffee? I just made some before you arrived."

"I would be happy to have some," Regina smiled and life seemed perfect.

"I'm afraid I don't have any milk. I haven't manage to do groceries."

"Black is fine."

Emma picked up Regina's coat and bag which Regina hasn't even noticed hit the floor, and turned to take Regina's hand in hers and lead the other woman to the bar counter in her kitchen. Regina took a seat in one of the high chairs, enjoying the view of considerably more energetic Emma.

"It's really nice to see you moving around, in your own space," she said.

"It's nice to be here. Of course, I have you to thank, don't I?" Emma asked fishing for reasons while taking out a pair of mugs.

"No need to thank me. I was just…"

"What? Doing your job?" Emma asked eyebrows raised. "Don't even start. We both know posting bail for a client isn't in your job description."

"Well, no, it's not. But you asked me out on a date. How could I let such opportunity pass me?" Regina smiled. "Besides, I trust you not to leave and get me in trouble."

"I wouldn't," Emma nodded. "I also hope you know I don't plan on getting you in any trouble over our… over us kissing."

Regina swallowed and lowered her head inspecting the counter. "Yes, well I hope not Miss Swan. That would put me in a very bad place career wise."

A cup of coffee appeared in her eyesight as Emma slid it over the counter. She looked up.

"Sorry… Emma. You have to know I've never done anything like this before. Not with a client, nor with a woman. But, I need to be honest. It might have started when I saw you on that website, but it's not just that. It's more. I find it difficult to understand."

"You've been looking at my pictures a lot?"

Regina puckered her lips in a silent answer.

"I gather you liked what you saw."

"Very much so."

Emma's smile was contagious. Coffee tasted good too.

"Regina, I was planning on ordering a pizza for dinner. Would you like to join me?"

"Pizza? That food will kill you."

"Better pizza than criminals. Indulge me, I just got out of jail."

Like she could resist that face.

"Fine. But please, something simple."

"Do you want us to order extra so you can take some to Henry?"

"No that's fine, Ashley, his babysitter, already has instructions for a more nutritive dinner adequate for a growing boy."

"Poor kid."

They passed half an hour until dinner arrived with Regina telling Emma all about the amazing adventures of Henry and Mal, showing her pictures of her Florida delegation and laughing at Gold's and Spencer's bewildered faces when she confronted them at the police station.

"I would've loved to be there and see him fidgeting. You know that he really scared me at some point during that time before you came to save me. I though I'll never see the light of day again."

"You know, his wife is pregnant," at Emma's curious look Regina continued. "Yeah, I think perhaps… I mean, if he was willing to go to these lengths to avenge son number one, perhaps his heart will soften a bit with child number two and he'll reconsider his priorities in life."

"You mentioned once he is a friend of your mother's. I can't imagine how that works."

"If you knew my mother, you could easily imagine. All I have to say is thank gods she can't gain access to a nuclear arsenal."

Emma remembered Regina telling her some bits of information about that relationship, so she didn't think about her movement's much when she slid her hand across the counter and took Regina's fingers. Gods, even the smallest and most innocent of touches continued to send sparks. "You can tell me more about your family if you want."

"And you can tell me why you cried before I came."

Emma just shrugged her shoulders. "Nothing exciting to tell. I suppose everything came to me at once, and it was completely overwhelming. I was really fighting to maintain composure and tough exterior. I just needed some release. I hope you won't think I'm super lame."

"Of course you're not lame," Regina squeezed back. "Not even a little bit. In fact, you're super cool."

Emma laughed. "I swear, Regina, when you say things like 'super cool' it seems like you're speaking a foreign language."

"What? I'll have you know Miss Swan that I am familiar with English slang," she smiled and winked. "I have a child at home. Henry makes sure I don't embarrass him too much."

"Your kid, now, he seems totally chill."

"That is a compliment right?" Regina laughed. "He is. I'm so proud of him."

"And you have this glow in your face every time you mention him. It's wonderful."

Subsequent staring contest was interrupted by the pizza person. Emma got the plates, Regina got the pizza and they continued their conversation on the sofa.

"You know, I normally don't do meals on the sofa."

"Oh, I believe you."

Regina was chewing on her slice, amused at Emma and the novelty of the situation.

"Changing topics. I want to see Deville before FBI gets to her. I have a feeling that she won't give anything up if she's in jail. So it would be really good if we could get some indication on her story before. I don't know. It might be crazy, but I have this feeling I can get her to talk to me. If I can learn how useful she is, well, once she's in jail, I can subpoena her testimony and show to the jury she's a far more likely candidate for murder."

"Regina, she is a very dangerous character."

"I know. But she is supposedly really smart. She won't risk hurting me."

"She is supposedly also really insane. Can we trust that she knows what she's doing?"

"Who knows… But I still don't have details on her whereabouts. I had a connection inside the FBI but after Jefferson, she's not spilling anything else."

"Ok… so we find her by other means. I am kind of very good at finding people."

Regina raised her eyebrow.

"What do you need?"

"A computer with internet connection," she said motioning to the empty work desk in the corner. "Mine is still in police custody."

"Say no more. I'll have one for you one in the morning, it's not a problem. Any preferences?"

"It's all fine. It would be good to have a minimum of 20 GB of free disk space, 2 GB of RAM, which is all not much but I can't run Kali Linux from my phone."

Regina just waved her head. "That is… super cool Emma, super cool English language."

"You are adorable."

"Excuse me?" Regina was shocked, "I'm sorry, I've been described many times, never as adorable."

"Too bad. 'Cause you are," Emma claimed and reached over to the other side of the sofa to caress the other woman's hand. "And I would really like to kiss you right now."

Regina closed her eyes remembering the pleasure Emma's kisses brought her. "I think that would be rather dangerous."

"Why? Regina, are we a thing? You and me? Because if we are… It is really difficult to keep my hands to myself."

"Of course we are a thing Miss Swan," Regina answered looking Emma straight in the eyes. "Why would you even ask? We just can't… right now. I'm still your attorney. We have a case to finish first."

"Ok. So we finish the case then," Emma agreed before leaving a small kiss on the edge of Regina's mouth. She was pleased to hear a small gasp escaping the lawyer. Good. "We see each other tomorrow?"

"Yes. Come to my office in the morning. I'll have a computer for you to borrow, and if you want, we can have dinner in my place in the evening. That fluffy monster misses you, I'm sure."

"Is that a date? Because I'm pretty sure I invited you out first."

"No, it's not a date. Just a dinner."

Emma didn't look convinced. "Sure… So will Henry be sad if it take Mal home?"

"Perhaps. You'll have to promise him some sort of visitation rights."

"I'm sure that can be arranged."

Regina got up and picked up her bag. "Thank you for dinner Emma. And I'm sorry for not calling you and for being out of touch."

"Thank you for your company. You considerably improved my day."

They walked to the door and before leaving Regina hugged her once more.

"I'm so relieved you're out Emma. We'll fix the rest of this mess too."

They stood there for a minute trying to resist all the impulses that were telling them to forget reason. So before that battle is decided, Regina finally nodded and turned to leave.

"Regina, have you sorted out my closet?"

Regina burst out laughed. "Goodnight Miss Swan."

Emma closed the door with a goofy smile on her face. This felt good.


	15. Illegal

N/A: I know it's a slow progress. It's super frustrating to me, so I'm extremely grateful for your patience with this story!

Lots of love :*

* * *

Intercom buzzed only once before Regina picked up.

"It's Emma."

"Come in!"

She rushed back to sit securely behind the desk, as if that strategic maneuver would somehow prevent her from rushing into arms of her client. Tink was still not back, therefore artificial barriers such as spacious office furniture seemed like the an appropriate solution. Because she couldn't do a rerun of last night. Not if she wanted to maintain some distance for a while.

Relax, breathe, check the online news.

Couple of minutes later, knock at the door.

"I'm here Miss Swan."

When she raised her head from the computer screen a smiling Emma Swan was already standing in her office, looking like an off duty supergirl, leather red jacket and beautiful blonde curls included. The woman was stunning and Regina had a feeling she was mostly unaware of her effect on others.

"So, this is where you're plotting my liberation?"

"Yes. And I'm glad you get to join in."

Emma lifted the carbon holder with two large takeaway cups.

"I brought us some coffee from the coffee place downstairs. I figured you would not say no to coffee."

"I wouldn't. Please, do sit down."

But Emma Swan was not a predictable force. She seemed to contemplate something for a moment, she put the coffee on the corner next to a lamp, and promptly sat on the edge of the desk, shapely jeans-clad tight in a full view.

"Miss Swan! Did you grew up in a barn?"

"Nope, orphanage." Before Regina could be embarrassed, Emma leaned over. "I had troubles last night. I was so happy to be in my own bed with my own clean sheets but I didn't count on the fact that, for what felt like the first time in a very looong time, I was wanting someone next to me. And when I say someone…" She stopped speaking to softly brush her lips over Regina's, just the barest of touch. "I thought you wanted to know."

Regina looked at the beautiful face of the woman who was showing more and more just how good of a match they could be, and then, in an attempt to clear her thoughts of all temptation, her gaze fell lower. Big mistake. Those tops should not be an appropriate meeting attire, duration of a meeting notwithstanding. She gripped the chair handles. "Emma, I'm glad to hear that. However, I would suggest you remove yourself from my desk."

"Or what?"

"Or we will never get anything done," she said, a dangerous look on her face, her hand stopping its progress across the desk surface just inches away from Emma.

Emma smiled, very happy with the answer. "Good. So, you have a computer for me to borrow?"

She got up from the desk and sat in a chair like a normal civilized human.

"Yes I do."

Regina got up and lifted a thin notebook in a elegant black case from a low part of a bookshelf.

"You know those pencil skirts you wear should be illegal."

"So should your jeans. Seriously, I don't even know how you manage to put those on," the lawyer responded nonchalantly. "Now, stop flirting Miss Swan. We have important business to attend to."

" _I_ have important business. Let _me_ take care of finding Deville first. I'll do my magic and give you back the machine once I'm done," she said taking the case, brushing her fingers against Regina's.

A breath, a beat.

"No need. You can keep it until we get your's back from police custody."

"Thanks, that is very sweet of you."

Emma opened it. It was a new super powerful Asus. "Not bad. Probably better than what I had. And don't worry. I don't save my files on this hard drive. Just in case."

"Yes I remember. Remote servers in Moldavia or something like that."

"Montenegro actually."

Regina just waved her head. "Well, you do your part and be careful not to do anything illegal."

"How illegal?"

"Emma," Regina pierced her with her best Evil Queen.

"Look, I will do a couple of unauthorised accesses, and look into some databases I shouldn't look at. That's a part of what I do on the job. Consider it work routine. But, never before have there been any traces, and I never misused the information. Considering the circumstances, I'll be even more careful, so don't worry," she said and took her coffee for a couple of sips. "I'll dedicate my time to this, and get back to you with the results."

Regina didn't look convinced.

"Don't you think that the wondrous puppet Albert Spencer wouldn't have raised a convenient additional hacking case against me if he had something on it? They took my computer and they couldn't connect any dots. I promise, it'll be fine."

Lawyer leaned back in her chair and Emma passed her her cup. There was no point in trying to argue on this, she saw it in those green eyes.

"So how was your time home? Feeling relaxed?"

Emma took a second to answer, swirling her coffee.

"Good. I'm happy to be home. But I have to say, this morning I wanted to go to my usual swimming pool. I found my swimming suite, packed my gear, and then finally decided not to bother. It used to be my favourite workout. But that is normal, right? You probably had clients that went through some things and had... emotional reactions, no?"

Regina was looking at her with understanding. "I'm sure that is perfectly normal Emma. I'm not an expert in these things for sure, but I would expect that one needs a recovery time after going through something traumatic, no matter how tough they are. As far as my clients are concerned, well, I've seen a lot."

Emma looked a bit embarrassed as she examined the cup in her hands. "Yes, I suppose I should give myself some time."

"You should. You told me you dream about it, being in the water, swimming to the shore. Perhaps it would be a good idea to talk about it with someone who's an expert?"

"What? Like a shrink? Sorry, not my thing."

"Getting help when one needs it is not embarrassing or weak. I had to tell that to myself a lot of the times when Henry I are were going through a rough patch, and I'm glad I took that leap," Regina said to quiet Emma. "Look, why don't we talk about this tonight after dinner?"

Blonde nodded and after checking her wristwatch, got up to leave. Regina escorted her to the door. "Ok. So, about tonight? Do you like lasagnas?"

"I love lasagnas. And before you say anything, I'll bring dessert. Cheese cake ok?"

"Perfect. Seven thirty sharp."

They smiled at each other and for a moment Regina felt like she will get another kiss.

"I'll see you tonight Regina."

* * *

Emma set up her temporary working desk in the corner of a public library and connected to her VPN. While booting a virtual OS she took some time to write down names she wanted to investigate. Deville was first on the list, Jones was second. She wanted to know is she had missed something crucial on the one armed idiot during her first sweep. She could also be checking up on Gold and the rest of his gang, but she had a feeling he will stay low, especially with Neal waiting to get out. Maybe she could double check Mrs French Gold while she's at it.

To think that in alternative reality in which she is straight and Neal is not a criminal double crossing douche, she could have been a part of this crazy family, perhaps even be the mother of Gold's grandchild. Ugh… better not. She had it hard enough in life.

As the last entry on her list of the day she put in Mary and David Nolan, and she can probably check their address on Facebook or some other social media. She'll send them some flowers and chocolates and a bottle of wine to thank them. Even if the good policeman wouldn't or couldn't step up when she needed him in those dark hours of Gold's attempted interrogation, she is still grateful, for they have found her Regina. Beautiful, competent and powerful Regina. Funny, she never considered that she would actually almost-soon-date someone like that, someone who is a… well… head bitch in charge. She has had fantasies of course, but how many of those ever come to life?

She bit her lip while typing in her passwords.

There are some interesting signs pointing out that Regina and her could be very, very, good together. That layered compatibility went beyond a surface attraction she was sure. There was something deeply parallel between them. A glorified bounty hunter and an attorney. Well… stranger things have come to pass. And she would think that Regina wouldn't let just anyone into her home. No, definitely, she, like Emma herself, was a private person.

Emma waved her head to focus on her task.

Oh FBI, same old weaknesses in your system. How miserable. Maybe, when she's done with her current job of being a murder defendant she can offer consulting services and fix up this disaster, do some good for the country. She snickered. Like they would bother to hire someone without something like a formal MIT degree and one of the big consultancy names attached to their CV. Their loss.

The thing with federal databases was that even though they were quite easy to access (well, depending on your definition of easy), there was not much time to do anything because every second she spends roaming around is a second closer to getting caught. Considering her situation, she connected through several IP addresses more than usual, and warned some of her Reddit friends she'll be using their access points as relays. Extra levels of caution for several minutes of running wild. And even if someone traces it back to this place, this was a perfect setting to confuse the CCTV checks. That is why Emma loved libraries. There were always at least a couple of guys with glasses and fancy Macs that looked more like what public would expect for hackers or bail bondspersons to look like.

And bingo! Deville was a hot case and not that difficult to find in the system. Poor woman, there was a chance she wasn't even aware of just how closely she was being watched. They had everything; her movements, whereabouts, phone conversations, package deliveries, money transactions. But that meant they were waiting with the bust probably because she is smart enough to run a competent cover, keep up good security and/or raise the stakes. Hmm… psychological profile seemed to indicate quite a murderous streak. She could very well be the one behind the hit on Jones.

But how is she still operational? Emma kept on researching.

Ok, there we go. A drug operation masquerading as an underground animal shelter. What the fuck? How on Earth was she keeping this up for so long? Emma checked her watch. Seven minutes in. Better not to risk it. She memorised the location and before starting out the logging out sequence thought about the financial data. Could she trace money to contractors? She doesn't know that much about those goons. How would she identify the sum or the person?

A pop-up window from one of her online people alarmed her.

"Swan, whatever you are doing, stop jetzt gleich. There's a trace on your activities. Tschüss!"

"Thanks. Out now," she quickly typed and logged out. Slowly, not to rouse anyone's suspicion she collected her things, disconnected her router, packed her gadgets and quietly left sipping her cold coffee.

Once outside, she strolled to a first public bench on a nearby esplanade and opened the notebook on her lap.

Smooth Emma. Another go on Jones will have to wait a bit.

Now for a change in online activity, something easy. Facebook, Mary Nolan.

God, this woman shared everything. Like, everything. Was that a picture of her fetus? Someone needs to teach these people that privacy matters.

A thought crossed her mind. Perhaps she could connect Mrs Nolan and Gold and they can exchange pregnancy stories.

She got all she needed in thirty seconds and ordered a gift to be delivered, courtesy of Emma Swan. She could, in theory, do it in person, but that was too much too intense human interactions for a day.

Speaking about flowers, perhaps Regina would appreciate some. Some fancy roses? Too bad it's not tulips season, those would be nice and not pretentious. Wine? She wouldn't dare to make a selection. Flowers it is.

Happy with her progress, Emma walked to Granny's dinner. She'll eat something, do some analysis of her data and then get home and get ready for the evening with hard information at her disposal, ready to impress.


	16. Meal

N/A: Hi guys!

Just wanted to say a big thank you for sticking with the story - it means a world to me. And if you would allow me - I would just say something a bit off-topic. Someone on FF pointed out how Emma has a bit of Lisbeth Salander in her, doing all that techy stuff. Thank you :) But, I wanted to say something about my version of Emma. "My Emma" was actually inspired by season 1-3 Emma Swan. This is how I felt the character back then. I don't know if she feels a bit out of character to you in this fic, but this is pretty much my head-canon. And I miss her a lot in Ouat. (Which is why I'm having troubles watching the new episodes. So, it's good we have fiction :)

I hope you enjoy the story. I am working on a new chapter already, so probably it will not be such a long wait.  
Thank you :*

* * *

"Henry, leave that poor cat alone," Regina said from kitchen.

How could his mom even know he's playing with her, Henry couldn't understand. Sometimes he really felt like she had some extra special magical power. He mumbled that last part aloud.

"Yes Henry, magical power called being a parent," she smirked, showing up on the bottom of the staircase.

"I can't wait until I too get those super powers."

"It will be a very long time Henry before you do," she said to him. "Now, if you would please wash your hands. Our guest should be here any minute now."

She went back to the kitchen to check the oven when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" Henry said rushing down the stairs with Mal in his arms. He opened the heavy doors slowly and came face to face with their guest, a smiling lady with pretty princess hair.

"Hi! You must be Henry. I'm Emma."

"Good evening, please come in."

"Well thank you," Emma said and stepped in, juggling in her arms a paper bag and roses. It took her a second to realise that the fluffy ball in the boy's arms is her pet. "Hi Mal!" Cat didn't move a muscle. "Gosh, I don't think she's very excited to see me. Sneaky traitor. You have been taking very good care of her."

Henry's proud smile was his main response. "It was my pleasure."

"Was she a good cat?"

"She was great! She got a lot of cuddles from me and my mum."

"Oh, did she?" Emma asked with a smile and Henry nodded.

"I'm afraid Miss Swan, your cat is now spoiled for ever," Regina said walking towards them, taking Emma's breath away, even at her most casual self. "Good evening."

She really should warn her guests when she's planning on wearing dark jeans. Not just spring it on them like this. Not fair.

"Good evening. You look... stunning."

"So do you," Regina said, her eyes slowly taking in the blonde.

Emma took a deep breath. Yes, this woman knew how to push all her buttons, probably without even giving it much conscious thought. "Ummm… these are for you," she said giving her flowers and the paper bag. She lowered the voice to a whisper: "That's our dessert. And also, a special chocolate treat for Henry, if you would allow it. I wanted to bring him something extra nice."

Regina nodded and took the roses with a big smile. "These are beautiful. Thank you. I love the colour."

"I thought you might. You wore a dark purple blouse in the courtroom once," Emma said, and in order to avoid Regina's amused stare, she kneeled next to Henry to smush Mal and give her little paws a small kiss. "I missed you cat. But I see you've been taken care of. Have you forgotten about me?"

"I think she still missed you," Henry said while petting Mal and then looked at Emma seriously. "Did you know that if you die alone in your house, your cat could eat you?"

"Henry!" Regina couldn't believe what the boy manages to pick up.

Emma just gave him an amused smile. "That's just an urban myth kid. Mal would never do such a thing. She's a sweetheart."

"Emma, come with me to the kitchen for a glass of wine. Everything is almost done, just a couple of more minutes for the oven." Regina said and turned to her son. "Henry, leave Mal for now so she can also have her meal and go wash your hands. I'll call you when it's done."

Emma followed her host to her kitchen, trying not to be too damn obvious about her appreciation of the jeans and the heels combo. She settled for the high chair next to a kitchen counter while Regina chose a bottle to open.

"Your kid is insanely adorable. And he's seems very sweet."

"Thank you, he is the heart of my life. And the best decision I have ever made. Although recently his imagination is going Neil Gaiman crazy. "

There it was again, that beautiful face all lit up. Emma quietly acknowledged once more that Regina Mills talking about her son is by far the most beautiful creature to walk the Earth.

"So, I hear that Mal gets cuddles from you. Should I be jealous?"

Regina laughed. "I don't know. She likes to spend time with people."

"No she doesn't. Well, not usually. She dislikes all my neighbours. I think she's just a good judge of character. And if you don't mind, I'd like Henry to keep an eye on her for a couple of more days. Just in case."

Regina passed the glass to Emma, thinking about the request for a second.

"It seems to me, you don't believe you'll stay out of jail. Do you doubt my skills Miss Swan?"

"Oh come on, you know that's not true. Well, the second part. I know you'll do a good job. It's me being out of trouble that I'm concerned with. It's just… every time I think I've found a solution, a good way of living, how to make money and not get hurt, I get dragged back into the mud. I don't know… It's depressing I guess."

"Emma, you chase criminals for a living, half of the time posing as an escort. How on Earth is that a good attempt in not getting hurt?" Emma just shrugged her shoulders while taking a sip, avoiding further explanation.

"Or are we talking about another kind of hurt?"

Another sip.

"Whoa, this is actually a very nice wine. It tastes like... above 20 dollars."

"Yeah, well… I find that a nice bottle is always a good investment. You can savour the taste, enjoy it more."

"I get it. I guess, for me it's was always too much of a hassle. The fine art of wine requires… a bit of commitment."

Regina looked into Emma's eyes and leaned her head, as if she was rethinking what to say. "Sometimes really good things are worth the hassle of commitment." The oven chimed that the meal is done. "Oh, you just got saved by the bell. We'll continue our talk later. Would you mind getting Henry to the table?"

Emma let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. It was clear to her it was not wine they were talking about, and getting little Mills junior was excellent way to clear her head. Yes, some good things were worth the hassle. She saw it in the way Henry smiled at his mom, and in Regina's eyes when she talked about him. She wants to be worth it too. There was no denying it.

There was a lot of laughter at the dinner table. The food was delicious, the dessert was a hit and the company was above all else, wonderful. It made Emma very happy to be embraced into this family dynamic, and the mother and son didn't seem to mind having her there at all. Henry especially seemed to be excited for Emma's presence. He didn't understand a lot of those adult stuff, but in his mind it was important for his mom to have friends, just as he had. And they normally kept their distance from auntie and grandma, Kat was not around very often either, so this made for a good change. Also, Emma was cool. They discussed Star Wars and their favourite fairy tales, and she liked The Little Match Girl and Maleficent (obviously), and she told him he will be able to play with Mal when he wanted, and made funny jokes and made mom smile. All good things.

They cleaned up and sorted the dishwasher together, despite of Regina's numerous protests how it really wasn't necessary. Very soon, it was time for Henry to go to bed. Just as Emma was thinking about the appropriate time to say goodnight, Regina came downstairs with a suggestion.

"So, Miss Swan, how would you like a glass of the best apple cider you ever tasted?"

"Sounds perfect."

They walked to a living room, Mal in tow. The atmosphere was quiet and comfortable, but not completely relaxed. With Henry away, the sparks were flying, and as their fingers touched while Regina was passing the glass, both of them felt that electrical current.

Each chose her own side of the comfortable sofa, Mal opting for her original owner's lap.

Emma took a sip. "Regina, this is great! You made this?"

"Yes, and I have to warn you, it's pretty strong."

"Which is exactly what we need. Need some help to relax."

She leaned her head back against the sofa, her beautiful neck on display. Regina focused on the creamy pale skin, tendons moving as she swallowed. Internal battle was waged on whether she will lean over and taste it, or whether she will be a sensible person that will be capable of having a conversation. Focus, Regina.

"So, what did you find out about our suspect?"

"Yes, actually, quite a lot. I got the address where I think we will be able to find her. It's, believe it or not, an address for an animal shelter. She's under strict surveillance, so info should be accurate. We'll have to act fast, though. Was thinking of going there tomorrow evening, because, according to fed's logged activity, they are gathering a solid case file and there is a strong chance she will not see Monday outside of jail."

"You mean, we'll go there tomorrow evening."

"Regina, it could be dangerous."

"Emma, it could be dangerous."

"You can't put yourself in situations like that because of me. Henry..."

"I can and I will. Do not mistake me for some helpless damsel in distress. I can take care of myself, and actually, my skills are more likely to lead to favourable outcome of our little mission. While, you, if anything goes awry, will be facing time… again. Excuse me, but I prefer meeting you here rather than in the county jail."

"All right, all right, sustained," Emma smiled raising her arms in mock surrender. "You really are good in your job, you know."

"I know, Is there any chance she'll manage to sneak out under FBI's nose?"

"With the amount of people and effort invested in this operation? I would say not likely. On the other hand, that means we will have to be fast, because they will probably see us coming. And we can't give away we know anything to Deville, because the feds will come in all guns blazing."

"Ok, we can meet tomorrow. I'll drop off Henry to his swimming class and call Ashley to pick him up afterwards."

"Sounds good. I'll text you the details."

"Emma, I'm impressed. I mean, I knew you were good at what you do, but your computer skills still got me by surprise. Where did you learn all that?"

Regina prompted her head against her arm and focused on the beautiful woman speaking.

"Self-taught mostly. When you do what I do, certain level of computer and digital skills is obligatory. I managed to learn a bit more than just how to search social media profiles, which gives me a small advantage in the business. Mostly, I was learning from online community. You know how I told you, I don't have many friends in real life?" Regina nodded. "Online, I connected with other people with similar interests, and I think I became a part of a community. I guess internet for me opened this vast world where I'm never lonely, even if I'm alone. And it helps a lot of young kids in a similar way too. I just wish I could afford a computer when I was a teenager, some things would be a bit easier to deal with."

"Like what, loneliness, your sexuality?"

"Yeah, I guess, that too. It's good for kids, and well, people of all ages, to know they are not the only one going through stuff." Emma smiled. "But discovering that I was attracted to girls was a good process for me. Although not without some trials and tribulations."

"Like Neal Cassidy?"

"Yes, like Neal Cassidy."

"But what about your friends that you told me you aren't keeping in touch with?"

Emma laughed. "Funny you should mention, because one of them is back, and she came to meet me when I got out. She's busy having sex with August Booth."

Regina laughed. "Oh dear, that is fast. Love is apparently in the air. Tink has a thing for our private detective, whom, to be perfectly honest with you, I slept with once or almost twice. I don't know if it's reciprocated, but probably yes. You've seen their pictures from their Florida mission. Well, she invited him to Disneyland, and apparently they are having fun," Regina said chuckling through the story.

"Should I be jealous? You and the hot private eye?"

"No, Tink can have him. It was a long time ago and not much of a tale. Anyway, my tastes changed considerably since then."

"Changed?"

"Well, as you know, you are the first woman I have ever kissed. I never expected it or planned it. That is… unusual for me." Regina said taking another sip, trying to make her comment sound more casual.

She lowered her arm on the back of the sofa and Emma reached to intertwine their fingers. "I understand it can be challenging Regina. It's a change. Often, reactions of the family members are not positive, sometimes…"

"No, don't worry about that. The only positive family reaction I need is Henry's." Her thumb was making small circles on Emma's hand. "And to be honest, I'm looking forward to not being your lawyer anymore."

"Me too. Does that mean no attorney-client kissing for now?" Emma's eyes were lingering on Regina's lips, making the older woman hyper self-aware.

"Ummm… no, we really shouldn't. For now, I mean."

"I'm going to listen to you and respect that, even though that is the - very - last - thing I want right now."

"Tell me, Emma… what is it that you want right now?" Emma's eyes flickered in the soft light, surprised at the tone of voice and what it was implying, her fingers trembled slightly against Regina's hand. She was looking at the other woman, as if to examine how far can she go, how much to confess. When she saw Regina bite the corner of her lips with her perfect teeth, decision has been made for her.

"Fine, let's make it difficult. You, I want you. I want to kiss you badly. And I want to feel you kissing me back, with passion and no restraint. I want your hands in my hair and on my skin. I want to feel how well those jeans hug your thighs and I want to taste your skin and hear you moan my name." And then breathing became a problem for both women. "Is that what you want to hear Regina? Does that turn you on?"

"It does. It's what I wanted to hear," Regina said in a voice that dropped an octave and was hitting Emma straight into her stomach.

"How am I supposed to resist you?"

"I'm sorry, I'm provoking… making this harder."

Emma just waved head no and raised her hand from Regina's to lightly caress the lines of elegant bones. Regina's heart picked up the pace and she felt like Emma could hear it, see the artery throbbing with the beat.

"Don't ever apologise for that. There is no need. It just means, well, once I do make you come, all this anticipation will make your orgasm even better."

Regina caught her hand and pressed it stronger against her cheek and then slowly angled her head to press a gentle kiss on the fingers, and then another against the palm, and then another against the wrist. There was a touch of tongue during the last one and it made Emma glad she's sitting down.

"Regina."

"This is just to promise you that whatever pleasure you're planning to bestow on me, be sure, I'll be repaying double."

Mal apparently had enough for the evening and jumped down from Emma's lap to place herself on a cushion on the floor. Both women turned to look at her.

"That cat of yours has good timing."

"She might be right. Topic needs to be changed." She finished the last drop of cider and placed the glass on the table. Regina stood up to get her tablet and some fresh cold water for both of them. It wasn't possible, this level of attraction, of want. She fell hard. Hard. And she needed to concentrate on their task because otherwise to hell with her attorney ethics, she is far gone over the line as it is. "Right, so about tomorrow."

After they were both seated again, they discussed the strategy for the meeting with Deville and briefly went through the list of questions and goals that are of pressing concern. If they actually get to see this woman, they can't fuck it up. They might not get a second try, especially not if the woman was as crazy as it was implied.

Soon, to Regina's great annoyance, there was nothing else they could plan ahead.

"Half of my brain is telling me that we are doing a great mistake and we'll get ourselves in a lot of trouble, and I'm an idiot for going forward with this."

"Oh come on Regina, don't get pessimistic now. We go, we talk to her, we check if she's willing to brag about Jones. After she goes to jail, she won't risk getting into trouble over an additional murder."

"See, all these maybes and ifs are making me uncomfortable. This attitude is what got you on that exploding boat in the first place, and look how that turned out. Perhaps she won't care and we can talk to her without getting in the middle of a federal investigation."

"What investigation? I know nothing about any investigation. I'm innocent."

"Good, continue to practice." Regina said seriously, her face giving away her amusement. Emma smiled back until she realised how they're behaving.

"We are ridiculous."

"We are."

"And I need to leave."

"I wish I didn't have to agree on that." Regina took a deep breath and followed Emma who got up and looked around for her jacket.

"I'll get it for you."

In a couple of moments they were at the door, and Emma had nothing left to say except goodbyes.

"Thank you for inviting me to dinner. Henry and you, you both made my night."

"You're welcome Emma. I'll see you tomorrow."

Regina stepped closer and slowly wrapped her arms around Emma.

"Regina?"

"Yes?"

"Maybe just one small kiss?"

Regina's fingers dived into the blond locks and pulled her closer. "Maybe two small kisses."

And they were, gentle, fleeting and paper light brushing of lips, that made both women smile and wanting more. They reluctantly parted, and Regina let Emma step through the door.

"Regina?"

"Yes?"

"You should wear jeans more often."

"In your dreams Miss Swan."

"In my dreams, you're not wearing clothes Regina. Just fyi." With that, she turned and left.

Regina closed the door and took a large breath. She was standing there, trying to process and categorize the waves of emotions that were crashing into her, making her slightly unstable in her heels. God. That woman made her feel everything, she answered to all her inner questions, all her unvoiced desires. She made her bold and protective and scared all at the same time. Is this how love was supposed to feel, like you uncovered a great new mystery but at the same time found everything you need with one, accidental foreigner? Love. What if it's love?


End file.
